U.S. patent application number 16/046493 was filed with the patent office on 2018-12-13 for remote vehicle operator assignment system.
The applicant listed for this patent is General Electric Company. Invention is credited to James D. Brooks.
Application Number | 20180356814 16/046493 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 60090156 |
Filed Date | 2018-12-13 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180356814 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Brooks; James D. |
December 13, 2018 |
REMOTE VEHICLE OPERATOR ASSIGNMENT SYSTEM
Abstract
An assignment system and method determine time-variable risk
profiles for separate vehicle systems that are remotely controlled
by operators located off-board the vehicle systems. The
time-variable risk profiles represent risks to travel of the
vehicle systems that change with respect to time. An operator
staffing demand for the vehicle systems may be determined based on
the time-variable risk profiles. The staffing demand represents how
many operators are needed for remotely controlling the vehicle
systems at different times and a required qualification of one or
more operators. The system and method also assign operators to
remotely monitor and/or control the vehicle systems based on the
risk profiles and, optionally, the staffing demand. The operator
assigned to one or more vehicle systems changes with respect to
time while the vehicle systems are moving along routes.
Inventors: |
Brooks; James D.;
(Schenectady, NY) |
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Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
General Electric Company |
Schenectady |
NY |
US |
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Family ID: |
60090156 |
Appl. No.: |
16/046493 |
Filed: |
July 26, 2018 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15460431 |
Mar 16, 2017 |
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16046493 |
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15402797 |
Jan 10, 2017 |
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15460431 |
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62327101 |
Apr 25, 2016 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61B 5/11 20130101; H04L
67/18 20130101; G05D 1/0016 20130101; B61L 27/0022 20130101; G08G
9/00 20130101; A61B 5/0077 20130101; G05D 1/0077 20130101; A61B
5/0476 20130101; A61B 5/18 20130101; B61L 3/127 20130101; A61B
5/0205 20130101; A61B 5/021 20130101; H04L 67/12 20130101; A61B
5/024 20130101; A61B 5/0816 20130101; G05D 1/0027 20130101; B61L
27/0077 20130101; A61B 5/0402 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G05D 1/00 20060101
G05D001/00; A61B 5/11 20060101 A61B005/11; A61B 5/0205 20060101
A61B005/0205; A61B 5/0402 20060101 A61B005/0402; A61B 5/0476
20060101 A61B005/0476; A61B 5/00 20060101 A61B005/00; A61B 5/18
20060101 A61B005/18 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: determining time-variable risk profiles for
plural separate vehicle systems that are remotely controlled by
operators that are located off-board the separate vehicle systems,
the time-variable risk profiles representing one or more risks to
travel of the separate vehicle systems during trips of the separate
vehicle systems that change with respect to time during the trips
of the separate vehicle systems; and assigning the operators to
remotely monitor or control the separate vehicle systems during the
trips based on the time-variable risk profiles, wherein the
operator assigned to one or more of the separate vehicle systems
changes with respect to time during the trip of the one or more
separate vehicle systems while the one or more separate vehicle
systems is moving along one or more routes during the trip.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: determining an
operator staffing demand for the vehicle systems based on the
time-variable risk profiles of the separate vehicle systems, the
operator staffing demand representing how many of the operators are
needed for remotely controlling the separate vehicle systems at
different times during the trips and a required qualification of
one or more of the operators for remotely controlling the separate
vehicle systems at different times during the trips, wherein the
operators are assigned to remotely monitor or control the separate
vehicle systems during the trips based on the time-variable risk
profiles and based on the operator staffing demand.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the operator staffing demand is
determined by increasing how many of the operators are needed for
remotely controlling one or more of the separate vehicle systems
responsive to one or more of: detection of an emergency situation
involving the one or more separate vehicle systems, or receipt of a
passenger request, detection of an increase in the risk profile for
at least one of the separate vehicle systems.
4. The method of claim 1, further comprising one or more of:
remotely controlling movement of at least one of the separate
vehicle systems based on instructions received from at least one of
the operators assigned to the at least one of the separate vehicle
systems, or remotely monitoring operation of at least one of the
separate vehicle systems based on instructions received from at
least one of the operators assigned to the at least one of the
separate vehicle systems.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the time-variable
risk profiles for the separate vehicle systems includes identifying
one or more time-varying risks to travel of the separate vehicle
systems during movements of the trips that one or more of change
with respect to one or more of location along the trips or change
with respect to elapsed time during the trips.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the one or more time-varying
risks include one or more of travel of one or more of the separate
vehicle systems through an urban area, travel of one or more of the
separate vehicle systems with a hazardous load, travel of one or
more of the separate vehicle systems through a section of a route
undergoing maintenance, or a weather condition that changes with
respect to time and through which one or more of the separate
vehicle systems is to travel.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the time-variable
risk profiles for the separate vehicle systems includes forecasting
a change in one or more characteristics of the trip of one or more
of the separate vehicle systems.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the change in the one or more
characteristics of the trip that is forecasted includes a change in
a weather condition through which one or more of the separate
vehicle systems is traveling toward, a change in traffic congestion
through which one or more of the separate vehicle systems is
traveling toward, or a change in service or maintenance performed
on one or more routes on which one or more of the separate vehicle
systems will travel.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein assigning the operators to
remotely monitor or control the separate vehicle systems includes
communicatively coupling one or more of the separate vehicle
systems to one or more of the operators and one or more of:
wirelessly communicating command signals from the one or more
operators to the one or more separate vehicle systems for remotely
controlling movements of the one or more separate vehicle systems
or for remotely monitoring operations of the one or more separate
vehicle systems, or wirelessly communicating vehicle data from the
one or more separate vehicle systems to the one or more
operators.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein assigning the operators to
remotely control the separate vehicle systems includes changing
which of the operators are assigned to remotely control one or more
of the separate vehicle systems during movement of the one or more
separate vehicle systems during the trip of the one or more
separate vehicle systems.
11. The method of claim 10, further comprising restricting one or
more of how often or when an assignment of one or more of the
operators to remotely control the separate vehicle systems is
changed.
12. The method of claim 10, wherein changing which of the operators
are assigned to remotely control the one or more separate vehicle
systems includes reallocating a group of two or more of the vehicle
systems to the same operator.
13. The method of claim 10, wherein changing which of the operators
are assigned to remotely control the one or more separate vehicle
systems includes changing which of the operators is assigned to
remotely control at least one of the separate vehicle systems
responsive to receiving a request from one or more passengers in
the at least one separate vehicle system.
14. The method of claim 1, wherein the operators are assigned to
remotely control movement of the separate vehicle systems based on
whether two or more of the separate vehicle systems assigned to the
same operator one or more of: travel or are scheduled to travel in
a common geographic region, carry a common type of cargo, or travel
or are scheduled to travel in a common direction.
15. The method of claim 1, wherein the operators are assigned to
remotely control movement of the separate vehicle systems based on
one or more of a monitored fatigue level of the operators, an
amount of time that the operators have been working, when at least
one of the trips of the vehicle systems is scheduled to end,
experience levels of the operators, or training levels of the
operators.
16. A system comprising: one or more processors configured to
determine time-variable risk profiles for plural separate vehicle
systems that are remotely controlled by operators that are located
off-board the separate vehicle systems, the time-variable risk
profiles representing one or more risks to travel of the separate
vehicle systems during trips of the separate vehicle systems that
change with respect to time during the trips of the separate
vehicle systems, wherein the one or more processors also are
configured to assign the operators to remotely monitor or control
the separate vehicle systems during the trips based on the
time-variable risk profiles, wherein the operator assigned to one
or more of the separate vehicle systems changes with respect to
time during the trip of the one or more separate vehicle systems
while the one or more separate vehicle systems is moving along one
or more routes during the trip.
17. The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are
configured to determine the time-variable risk profiles for the
separate vehicle systems by identifying one or more time-varying
risks to travel of the separate vehicle systems during movements of
the trips that one or more of change with respect to one or more of
location along the trips or change with respect to elapsed time
during the trips.
18. The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors are
configured to determine the operator staffing demand by increasing
how many of the operators are needed for remotely controlling one
or more of the separate vehicle systems responsive to detection of
an emergency situation involving the one or more separate vehicle
systems.
19. The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more processors also
are configured to change which of the operators are assigned to
remotely control one or more of the separate vehicle systems during
movement of the one or more separate vehicle systems during the
trip of the one or more separate vehicle systems.
20. A method comprising: determining a time-variable risk profile
for a vehicle system that is to be one or more of remotely
controlled or remotely monitored by one or more operators that are
located off-board the vehicle system; determining an operator
staffing demand for the vehicle system based on the time-variable
risk profile that is determined, the operator staffing demand
representing how many of the operators are needed for one or more
of remotely controlling or remotely monitoring the vehicle system;
and assigning at least one of the operators to remotely monitor or
control the vehicle system based on the operator staffing demand
and the time-variable risk profile, wherein the at least one
operator assigned to the vehicle system changes with respect to
time during travel of the vehicle system.
21. The method of claim 20, wherein determining the time-variable
risk profile for the vehicle system includes identifying one or
more time-varying risks to travel of the vehicle system that change
with respect to time.
22. The method of claim 21, wherein the one or more time-varying
risks include one or more of travel of the vehicle system through
an urban area, travel of the vehicle system with a hazardous load,
or a weather condition that changes with respect to time and
through which the vehicle system is to travel.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 15/460,431, which was filed on 16 Mar. 2017,
and which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.
62/327,101, which was filed on 25 Apr. 2016. This application also
is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No.
15/402,797, which was filed on 10 Jan. 2017. The entire disclosures
of these three patent applications are incorporated herein by
reference.
FIELD
[0002] The subject matter described herein relates to remotely
controlling vehicles.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Many transportation segments are looking toward remote
vehicle operations. For example, the automobile industry, the
trucking industry, the rail industry, etc., are moving toward at
least partial remote-control of vehicles such as automobiles,
trucks, trains, or the like. While some industries may be looking
toward self-driving vehicles, these same industries may be looking
toward a backup solution where a remotely located operator is able
to take control of a vehicle from afar (e.g., due to a system
failure or other problem with the self-driving features of the
vehicle).
[0004] Remote operators can be assigned to remotely control
vehicles based on a variety of assignment processes. Many of these
known assignment processes, however, are rooted in an analysis of
static features or risks to remote operation of the vehicles. These
static features or risks can include known risks that do not change
with respect to time. But, movement of vehicles and remote-control
of vehicles can encounter risks that dynamically change with
respect to time. These time-varying risks may not be addressed by
the currently known operator assignment processes.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION
[0005] In one embodiment, a method includes determining
time-variable risk profiles for plural separate vehicle systems
that are remotely controlled by operators that are located
off-board the separate vehicle systems. The time-variable risk
profiles represent one or more risks to travel of the separate
vehicle systems during trips of the separate vehicle systems that
change with respect to time during the trips of the separate
vehicle systems. The method also optionally includes determining an
operator staffing demand for the vehicle systems based on the
time-variable risk profiles of the separate vehicle systems. The
operator staffing demand represents how many of the operators are
needed for remotely controlling the separate vehicle systems at
different times during the trips and a required qualification of
one or more of the operators for remotely controlling the separate
vehicle systems at different times during the trips. The method
also includes assigning the operators to remotely monitor or
control the separate vehicle systems during the trips based on the
time-variable risk profiles. Optionally, this assignment also may
be based on the operator staffing demand. The operator assigned to
one or more of the separate vehicle systems changes with respect to
time during the trip of the one or more separate vehicle systems
while the one or more separate vehicle systems is moving along one
or more routes during the trip.
[0006] In one embodiment, a system includes one or more processors
configured to determine time-variable risk profiles for plural
separate vehicle systems that are remotely controlled by operators
that are located off-board the separate vehicle systems. The
time-variable risk profiles represent one or more risks to travel
of the separate vehicle systems during trips of the separate
vehicle systems that change with respect to time during the trips
of the separate vehicle systems. The one or more processors also
are configured to assign the operators to remotely monitor or
control the separate vehicle systems during the trips based on the
time-variable risk profiles. The operator assigned to one or more
of the separate vehicle systems changes with respect to time during
the trip of the one or more separate vehicle systems while the one
or more separate vehicle systems is moving along one or more routes
during the trip.
[0007] In one embodiment, a method includes determining a
time-variable risk profile for a vehicle system that is to be one
or more of remotely controlled or remotely monitored by one or more
operators that are located off-board the vehicle system, and
determining an operator staffing demand for the vehicle system
based on the time-variable risk profile that is determined. The
operator staffing demand represents how many of the operators are
needed for one or more of remotely controlling or remotely
monitoring the vehicle system. The method also includes assigning
at least one of the operators to remotely monitor or control the
vehicle system based on the operator staffing demand and the
time-variable risk profile. The at least one operator assigned to
the vehicle system changes with respect to time during travel of
the vehicle system.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] The present inventive subject matter will be better
understood from reading the following description of non-limiting
embodiments, with reference to the attached drawings, wherein
below:
[0009] FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of a remote vehicle
operator assignment system;
[0010] FIG. 2 illustrates one example of a transportation system in
which several vehicle systems travel due to the remote-control
implemented by remote-control machines shown in FIG. 1;
[0011] FIG. 3 illustrates examples of time-varying risk profiles
for upcoming trips of different vehicle systems shown in FIG.
1;
[0012] FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of the assignment system
shown in FIG. 1;
[0013] FIGS. 5A through 5C illustrate a flowchart of one embodiment
of a method for dynamically assigning operators to remotely control
and/or monitor movements of one or more vehicle systems;
[0014] FIG. 6 illustrates one embodiment of a distributed control
system;
[0015] FIG. 7 illustrates one embodiment of a vehicle control
system;
[0016] FIG. 8 illustrates one embodiment of a remote-control system
shown in FIG. 6;
[0017] FIG. 9 illustrates one example of a graphical user interface
(GUI) presented to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control
system by a crew resource management unit of the corresponding
remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0018] FIG. 10 illustrates another example of a GUI presented to an
operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0019] FIG. 11 illustrates another example of a GUI presented to an
operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0020] FIG. 12 illustrates another example of information presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system by the
corresponding output device;
[0021] FIG. 13 illustrates an additional example of a GUI presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system of the
corresponding remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0022] FIG. 14 illustrates an additional example of a GUI presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system of the
corresponding remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0023] FIG. 15 illustrates an additional example of a GUI presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system of the
corresponding remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0024] FIG. 16 illustrates an additional example of a GUI presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system of the
corresponding remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0025] FIG. 17 illustrates an additional example of a GUI presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system of the
corresponding remote and/or vehicle control system;
[0026] FIGS. 18A and 18B illustrate another example of a GUI shown
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system by the
corresponding output device;
[0027] FIG. 19 illustrates a flowchart of one embodiment of a
method for distributed vehicle system control.
[0028] FIG. 20 illustrates a schematic illustration of a control
system of a vehicle system in accordance with one embodiment;
[0029] FIG. 21 illustrates a schematic illustration of an onboard
vehicle control system for a propulsion-generating vehicle in
accordance with one embodiment;
[0030] FIG. 22 illustrates a schematic illustration of a
remote-control system in accordance with one embodiment;
[0031] FIG. 23 illustrates a flowchart of a method for transferring
control of movement of a vehicle system from a remote-control
system to an onboard vehicle control system in accordance with one
embodiment;
[0032] FIG. 24 illustrates a flowchart of a method for transferring
control of movement of a vehicle system from an onboard vehicle
control system to a remote-control system in accordance with one
embodiment; and
[0033] FIG. 25 illustrates a schematic illustration of a system of
a vehicle system in accordance with one embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0034] The subject matter described herein relates to remote
operator assignment systems and methods that examine static and
dynamically changing risks to remote-control of vehicles, operator
qualifications, operator availability, and the like, and
dynamically assign which operators remotely control or monitor the
movement of vehicle systems. An operator may remotely control a
vehicle when the operator is located off-board the vehicle and
controls the movements of the vehicle from afar. In one embodiment,
the remote-control of vehicle systems as described herein relates
to the remote-control of automobiles, rail vehicles, marine
vessels, and the like, and does not extend to the remote-control of
toy or model vehicles (e.g., model trains, model cars, model
airplanes, remote-control toy boats, etc.). One embodiment of the
inventive subject matter described herein relates to assigning
operators to remotely control aircraft, such as drones or other
aircraft.
[0035] At least one embodiment described herein provides an
assignment system and method that determine time-varying risk
profiles for each vehicle of several vehicle systems traveling
within a monitored transportation system. The monitored
transportation system can be a portion or the entirety of a network
of interconnected routes, such as interconnected roads, tracks,
waterways, etc., that is monitored by sensors so that operators can
remotely control movement of vehicle systems on the routes. The
risk profiles can quantify the amount of risk involved in remotely
controlling a vehicle. As described herein, there can be greater
risk (and, a larger numerical value assigned for the risk profile)
in a vehicle carrying hazardous cargo, a vehicle traveling through
a congested area, a vehicle traveling through hazardous weather
conditions, or the like, relative to other vehicle systems. The
risk may change with respect to time, so the risk profile of a
vehicle can change with respect to time. The risk may be estimated
based on forecasted or predicted conditions (e.g., weather
conditions, traffic conditions, etc.).
[0036] The system and method can use the risk profiles of the
vehicle systems to determine operator staffing needs for the
vehicle systems over time. The operator staffing needs can indicate
how many operators are needed at different times to remotely
control the vehicle systems (for which the risk profiles were
determined), and optionally can indicate specialized operator
qualifications that are needed at one or more times for remotely
controlling the vehicle systems. The specialized qualifications can
be years of operator experience, training classes or sessions
completed by the operator, types of licenses obtained by the
operators, etc. The qualifications that are needed can change with
respect to time. For example, as a remotely controlled vehicle
travels through different geographic areas, the risks involved in
remotely controlling the vehicle in some areas can significantly
increase (thereby potentially necessitating specialized operator
training) or decrease (thereby potentially eliminating a need for
specialized operator training). As another example, as a remotely
controlled vehicle travels through different jurisdictions,
different laws and/or regulations can require different operator
qualifications for travel in the corresponding areas. The system
and method optionally can determine the operator staffing need
based on a likelihood of vehicle failure or another emergency
situation. This likelihood can be determined or otherwise based on
previous travels of vehicle systems in the transportation system,
and can increase for larger risk profiles (or decrease for lesser
risk profiles).
[0037] The system and method can use the operator staffing needs to
determine operator staffing levels. The operator staffing levels
can be a number of operators needed to be available (e.g., at a
facility from which the vehicle systems are remotely controlled) at
different upcoming times (e.g., during an upcoming work shift). The
operator staffing levels also can indicate a number of operators
needed to be available for an upcoming shift that have a
specialized qualification, as described above. The system and
method can then use the staffed operators to remotely control
movements of the vehicle systems during movement in the
transportation system. The system and method can select from those
operators that are onsite at the facility and assign those
operators to different vehicle systems for remotely controlling the
vehicle systems. This assignment can be based on a variety of
factors, such as the current risk profile for a vehicle (which can
indicate that more operators are needed for remotely controlling
the vehicle when the risk profile is larger or that fewer operators
are needed for remotely controlling the vehicle when the risk
profile is smaller), the presence of an operator onboard the
vehicle (e.g., fewer remote operators needed when an operator is
onboard), the occurrence of an emergency (e.g., accident, such as a
collision) or failure of a vehicle or vehicle component (e.g.,
assign more operators when this occurs), etc. At least one
technical effect of the subject matter described herein provides
for the efficient assignment and re-assignment of operators to
remotely control and/or monitor movement of several different
vehicles to ensure the safe and timely concurrent movement of the
vehicles.
[0038] FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of a remote vehicle
operator assignment system 100. The assignment system 100 operates
to assign different human operators 102 or groups of operators to
remotely control movements of vehicle systems 104 (e.g., vehicle
systems 104A, 104B in FIG. 1). A vehicle system 104 can be formed
of a single vehicle, or can be formed of 2 or more vehicles. With
respect to multiple-vehicle systems 104, the vehicle systems 104
can include two or more vehicles that are mechanically or logically
coupled together. The vehicles may be mechanically coupled with
each other when the vehicles are mechanically coupled by a coupler,
for example. With respect to logically coupled vehicle systems, two
or more vehicles can be logically connected but not mechanically
connected when the vehicles communicate with each other during
movement to coordinate the movements of the vehicles with each
other and cause the vehicles to move together along one or more
routes. While only two vehicle systems 104 are shown in FIG. 1, but
the assignment system 100 can assign operators 102 to many more
vehicle systems 104 for concurrent remote-control of the vehicle
systems 104. The operators 102 are shown in FIG. 1 as Operator #1,
Operator #2, and so on. Although only four operators 102 are shown
in FIG. 1, the assignment system 100 may assign a much larger
number of operators 102 to remotely control the vehicle systems 104
(e.g., up to fifty operators 102, up to one hundred operators 102,
etc.). The operators 102 may be onboard and/or off-board the
vehicle systems 104, as shown in FIG. 1. In one example, an onboard
operator 102 can control movement of the vehicle system 104 in
which the operator 102 is located. In another example, the onboard
operator 102 can control movement of the vehicle system 104 in
which the operator 102 is located and can remotely control movement
of a vehicle in the same vehicle system 104 and/or another vehicle
system 104 (e.g., if the vehicle system 104 in which the operator
102 is located has multiple propulsion-generating vehicles). In
another example, the onboard operator 102 can remotely control
movement of another vehicle system 104 in which the operator 102 is
not located from the vehicle system 104 in which the operator 102
is located.
[0039] The operators 102 use remote-control machines 106 (e.g., "RC
Machine #1," and so on, in FIG. 1) to monitor operations of the
vehicle systems 104 assigned to the operators 102, and to remotely
control the operations of the vehicle systems 104. The machines 106
optionally can be referred to as a control system or remote-control
system, or can be included as part of a control system.
[0040] The remote-control machines 106 can each represent a
stand-alone or shared computing device, such as hardware circuitry
that includes and/or is connected with one or more processors (for
example, one or more field programmable gate arrays, one or more
microprocessors and/or one or more integrated circuits). The
processors of the remote-control machines 106 operate to receive
input from the operators 102 of the corresponding machines 106, and
to generate command messages that are electronically communicated
to the vehicle systems 104 via, through, or by way of one or more
computerized communication networks 110. The networks 110 can
represent networks formed by routers, transceivers, repeaters,
modems, satellites, or the like, and allow the remote-control
machines 106 to communicate wirelessly with the vehicle systems
104, and can allow for sensors 112 disposed on board and/or
offboard the vehicle systems 104 to communicate monitored
characteristics of movement of the vehicle systems 104 and/or the
routes being traveled on. The sensors 112 can represent cameras,
radar systems, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, tachometers,
accelerometers, or the like.
[0041] The remote-control machines 106 can remotely control
movement of the vehicle systems 104 by sending command messages to
controllers 114 ("Controller #A" and "Controller #B" in FIG. 1)
that are on board the vehicle systems 104. In one embodiment, a
single operator 102 may be assigned to remotely control multiple,
different (e.g., separate) vehicles 104. For example, a single
operator 102 may a machine 106 to remotely control multiple
vehicles 104 moving in different directions, at different speeds,
in different locations, etc., at the same time. Alternatively,
multiple operators 102 may be assigned to control a single vehicle
104 at the same time.
[0042] The controllers 114 onboard the vehicle systems 104 can
represent hardware circuitry that includes and/or is connected with
one or more processors. These processors operate to control
movement of the vehicle systems 104. For example, responsive to
receiving a command signal from a remote-control machine 106, a
controller 114 onboard a vehicle 104 can forward the same command
signal or form another command signal that is communicated to a
propulsion system 116 ("Prop Sys #A" and "Prop Sys #B" in FIG. 1)
onboard the same vehicle 104. The propulsion system represents
engines, motors, brakes, or the like of the vehicle systems 104
that operate to start or stop movement of the vehicle systems 104.
Communication systems 118 ("Comm Sys" in FIG. 1) onboard the
vehicle systems 104 represent communication circuitry that sends
and/or receives electronic signals, and is used to communicate with
the remote-control machines 106. The communication systems 118 can
represent transceivers, modems, routers, or the like.
[0043] In one embodiment, the remote-control machines 106 directly
control the movement of the vehicles 104 by sending these command
signals to the controllers 114. For example, a command signal may
be sent to a controller 114 from a machine 106 that automatically
changes a throttle setting, of the vehicle, that automatically
engages brakes of the vehicle, or that automatically implements
some other operational change to the vehicle. Optionally, the
remote-control machines 106 can indirectly control the movement of
the vehicles 104, such as by sending the command signals to
controllers 114 which then then display or otherwise present
instructions to any onboard operator (e.g., an operator 102 or
another operator) of the vehicle system 104 on how to control the
movement of the vehicle 104 from onboard the vehicle system 104 in
accordance with the command signal received from a remote-control
machine 106.
[0044] The assignment system 100 can communicate with the
remote-control machines 106 and/or the vehicle systems 104 via the
network or networks 110. Alternatively, the assignment system 100
can be formed as part of or shared with one or more of the
remote-control machines 106. The assignment system 100 operates to
determine time-variable risk profiles for each of several separate
vehicle systems 104. The time-variable risk profiles represent one
or more risks to travel of the separate vehicle systems 104 during
trips of the separate vehicle systems 104 that change with respect
to time during the trip to the vehicle systems 104.
[0045] FIG. 2 illustrates one example of a transportation system
200 in which several of the vehicle systems travel due to the
remote-control implemented by the remote-control machines 106 shown
in FIG. 1. There are four vehicle systems 104 shown in FIG. 2, and
labeled 104A, 104B, 104C, and 104D. The vehicle systems 104 travel
on several interconnected routes 202 of the transportation system
200. These routes 202 can represent roads, tracks, waterways, or
the like. Several of the remote-control machines 106 can remotely
control the movements of the different vehicle systems 104A-D at
the same time. The remote-control machines 106 can remotely control
the separate movements of these vehicle systems 104, even though
the vehicle systems 104 are concurrently traveling on different
routes 202, traveling in different directions on the different
routes 202, traveling in different directions on the same route
202, traveling in the same direction on different routes 202,
and/or traveling toward different locations.
[0046] The assignment system 100 can determine the time-variable
risk profiles for the separate vehicle systems 104 by identifying
one or more time-varying risks and/or one or more static risks to
the safe travel of the separate vehicle systems 104. The
time-varying risks can represent factors involved in the safe
travel of the vehicle systems 104 that change with respect to time.
The static risks can represent factors involved in the safe travel
of the vehicle systems 104 that do not change with respect to time.
The time-varying risks can be different for different locations
along the route or routes 202 being traveled by vehicle system 104
during an upcoming trip, and/or can be different at different times
or elapsed times during the upcoming trip of the vehicle system
104.
[0047] The time-varying risks can include a variety of factors that
negatively impact the ability for a vehicle system 104 to otherwise
safely travel without incident between the starting location and a
destination location for an upcoming trip. As one example, a
time-varying risk can include if a vehicle system 104 is to travel
through an area having a population density that is greater than a
designated threshold. Urban or more heavily populated areas can
pose greater risks for the safe travel of the vehicle system 104
through the area due to the increased presence of pedestrians,
other vehicle systems, restrictions on how fast the vehicle systems
104 can move, restrictions on the types of cargo that can be
carried through the area, or the like. For example, a vehicle
system 104 traveling through a heavily populated area may be more
likely to be involved in a collision with a pedestrian or other
vehicle system than if the same vehicle system travels in a
sparsely populated area.
[0048] Another example of a time-varying risk includes whether a
vehicle system 104 is traveling with a hazardous load. The
hazardous load can be cargo that poses a safety threat to those
onboard the vehicle system 104 and/or to those offboard the vehicle
system 104. Examples of hazardous loads or cargo include
radioactive material, corrosive material, flammable material,
explosive material, or the like. Vehicle systems 104 caring
hazardous loads may be associated with a greater risk profile the
vehicle systems 104 that do not carry such a load. Traveling with a
hazardous load can be a time-varying risk in that the hazardous
cargo may only be carried by the vehicle system 104 for part of an
upcoming trip. For example, the vehicle system 104 may stop off at
one or more intermediate locations between the starting location at
a destination location of the trip to pick up and subsequently drop
off hazardous cargo. The risk profile for such a vehicle system 104
may increase while the hazardous cargo is being carried by the
vehicle system 104, and may decrease after the hazardous cargo is
dropped off.
[0049] Another example of a time-varying risk includes a forecasted
weather condition. Some weather conditions, such as precipitation,
high winds, or the like, can increase the risk of an accident or
operational failure of certain vehicle systems 104. For example,
vehicles traveling in icy or snowy conditions may have an increased
risk profile relative to vehicle systems 104 traveling in dry and
warmer conditions. As another example, vehicles systems 104
traveling through areas having strong side winds (winds that are
not with or directly against the direction of travel, but closer to
perpendicular to a direction of travel) may have a greater risk
profile during travel through those winds then during other
times.
[0050] Another example of a time-varying risk is a hazardous
section of a route 202. Some sections of the routes 202 may include
steep grades, sharp curves, undulating surfaces, and the like.
These route features can increase the inter-car forces between
vehicles in multi-vehicle systems 104, and therefore can increase
the risk of a vehicle system 104 breaking apart or moving off the
route 202.
[0051] Another example of a time-varying risk is a geographic area
having vehicular traffic congestion. Some sections of the
transportation system formed of the routes 202 can have many
vehicle systems concurrently traveling on sections of routes 202
that are near each other during certain times of the day. The
presence or predicted presence of more than a designated number of
vehicle systems 104 per unit area can indicate traffic congestion,
and can increase the risk profile of a vehicle system 104 traveling
toward or through that area.
[0052] Another example of a time-varying risk is a section of a
route 202 that is under maintenance. A route 202 that is under
maintenance can pose a greater risk to safe travel due to the
presence of maintenance personnel, equipment, and the like, on or
near the route 202.
[0053] With respect to the static risks that make up the risk
profiles, one example is a type of cargo carried by a vehicle
system 104. As described above, the presence of hazardous cargo
being carried by a vehicle system 104 can increase the risk profile
for that vehicle system 104. While the hazardous cargo may be a
time-varying risk, this cargo also can be a static risk when the
cargo is carried by the vehicle system 104 for an entire trip.
Another example of a static risk includes a size of a vehicle
system 104. The size of vehicle system can represent the length,
weight, number of vehicles, or the like, in the vehicle system 104.
Longer vehicle systems, vehicle systems that are heavier, and/or
vehicle systems 104 formed of many more vehicles, can be associated
with greater static risks than vehicle systems that are shorter,
lighter, and/or vehicles.
[0054] A static risk also can be the presence (or absence) of an
operator onboard the vehicle system 104 and/or their experience,
qualifications, and performance history. Some vehicles systems 104
may have a human operator travel on the vehicle system 104. The
presence of the onboard operator 102 can reduce the risk profile
for that vehicle system 104 due to the onboard operator being
available to correct any incorrect actions directed by the
remote-control machine 106, to quickly respond to emergency or
failure situations, or the like. Conversely, vehicle systems 104
having no onboard operator may be associated with greater risk
profiles.
[0055] With respect to the example of the transportation system 200
shown in FIG. 2, the transportation system 200 is shown as
including a densely populated geographic area 204 which one or more
of the vehicle systems 104A, 104B, 104D may be traveling toward.
This densely populated area 204 can represent the boundaries of a
city or town, or can represent another geo-fence around a
geographic area where the population exceeds one or more designated
thresholds.
[0056] Optionally, the geographic area 204 can represent an area of
increased vehicular traffic. For example, the area 204 can
represent portions of the routes 202 having a number of vehicle
systems that exceed sum designated threshold. Stated differently,
the area 204 can represent an area having congested vehicular
traffic through which travel of one or more additional vehicle
systems 104 may be associated with increased risk. The assignment
system 100 can determine where the geographic area 204 is located
based on a designated boundary (for example, the boundaries of the
city), based on an operator-set boundary (for example, the
boundaries of an area where increased population is known or
believed to be located), or based on monitored traffic patterns.
For example, global positioning system receivers disposed onboard
vehicles 104, traffic cameras, or other sensors, can monitor how
many vehicles systems 104 are in the area 204. If the number of
vehicle systems 104 within the area 204 is too large, if the moving
speed of the vehicle systems 104 in the areas begins to slow or is
slower than a designated speed, etc., the assignment system 100 can
determine that the geographic area 204 is associated with traffic
congestion.
[0057] The increase in the risk profile due to traffic congestion
may be a time-varying risk that is predicted based on past traffic
patterns. For example, if it has been learned that the area 204 is
associated with heavy traffic during certain periods of the day
(for example, during morning or evening rush hour), then the time
varying risk profile for a vehicle system 104 that is scheduled or
expected to travel through the area 204 during one or more these
periods of the day may exhibit greater risk than for vehicle
systems that do not travel through that area 204 or the vehicle
systems that travel through the area 204 at a time that increased
traffic is not predicted.
[0058] The transportation system 200 also is shown with a
designated hazardous terrain area 206. This area 206 can represent
the portion of a route 202 having hazardous route conditions.
Hazardous route conditions can include steep grades, sharp curves,
undulating portions of a route 202, or the like. Optionally,
hazardous route conditions can include maintenance or repair of the
segment of the route 202 due at least in part to the presence of
personnel on or near the repaired section of the route 202. Travel
of the vehicle system 104 through the area 206 can be associated
with an increased risk profile during travel of the vehicle system
104 through the area 206.
[0059] Also shown in FIG. 2 is a forecasted weather area 208. The
weather area 208 can represent the geographic area through which
one or more routes 202 extend, and that is associated with poor or
hazardous weather conditions. A forecasted hazardous weather
condition can include a prediction that the weather in the area 208
will be detrimental to travel during one or more times the vehicle
system 104 is scheduled or otherwise expected to travel through the
area 208. For example, the area 208 can represent locations where
the weather is forecasted to include precipitation, elevated
temperatures, strong side winds, or other hazardous conditions.
Because the weather conditions may change with respect to time, the
forecasted weather area 208 may be associated with the time-varying
risk. Alternatively, if a predicted weather pattern is not expected
to change for extended period of time, then the forecasted weather
area 208 can be a static risk to travel of vehicle systems 104.
[0060] In one embodiment, the same weather condition may be a
hazardous condition that increases the risk profile of a vehicle
but may not be a hazardous condition that increases the risk
profile of another vehicle. Stated differently, vehicles may have
different changes to the risk profiles for the same weather
condition depending on parameters or characteristics of the
vehicles. Vehicles that are taller (e.g., extend greater heights
above the route or surface being traveled upon), vehicles having
centers of gravity that are farther above the route or surface,
vehicles that are lighter, etc., may have greater risks during
travel through areas of increased wind speed. For example, empty
coal cars in trains may be more susceptible to tipping over or
derailment during travel in windy areas (when compared with full
coal cars).
[0061] FIG. 3 illustrates examples of time-varying risk profiles
304 (e.g., risk profiles 304A, 304B, 304D) for upcoming trips of
different vehicle systems 104 (e.g., vehicle systems 104A, 104B,
104D). The risk profile 304A represents the quantified risks for
the upcoming trip of the vehicle system 104A along the route 202
shown in FIG. 2, the risk profile 304B represents the quantified
risks for the upcoming trip of the vehicle system 104B along
another route 202 shown in FIG. 2, and the risk profile 304D
represents the quantified risks for the upcoming trip of the
vehicle system 104D along another route 202 shown in FIG. 2. The
risk profiles 304 are shown alongside a horizontal axis 300 that
represents time or distance along an upcoming trip. The risk
profiles 304 also are shown alongside a vertical axis 302 that
represents quantified risks during the trip.
[0062] The assignment system 100 can quantify risks by assigning
numerical values to different vehicle systems 104 based on the
time-varying and/or static risks associated with each vehicle
system 104 at different times or locations for the upcoming trip.
The values assigned to the different risks can be set by an
operator of the assignment system 100 or can have default values.
Increased values can be assigned to greater risks, with larger
risks associated with increased likelihoods of vehicle accidents,
failures, etc. For example, a vehicle system 104 having a total
weight above an upper designated threshold can be assigned a risk
value of ten. If the vehicle system 104 has a total weight that is
less than the upper threshold, but above a lower threshold, then
the risk value may be reduced to eight. If the vehicle system 104
also travels over a dangerous section of the routes 202, then the
risk value for the vehicle system 104 can increase in the risk
profile by fifteen while the vehicle system 104 travels over the
dangerous route section. If the vehicle system 104 does not travel
through a heavily populated area, then the risk may not be
increased (or may be reduced, such as by a value of five). These
numbers are provided merely as some examples, and other values may
be used.
[0063] For example, the risk profile 304A shows a relatively low
risk for a first portion 306 of the trip of the vehicle system
104A. This low risk is due to the fact that the vehicle system 104A
is formed from a single vehicle (with multiple vehicle systems
being assigned greater risk), the vehicle system 104A is not
carrying hazardous cargo, the vehicle system 104A is not traveling
in a dangerous portion of the route 202, the vehicle system 104A is
traveling in a rural (e.g., sparsely populated area), and the
vehicle system 104A is light (e.g., is not carrying a large load).
During a subsequent portion 308 of the trip, the vehicle system
104A is traveling through the area 204 where there is significantly
more population. This change increases the risk to the vehicle
system 104A during travel through the heavily populated area 204,
as shown in FIG. 3. Upon exiting the heavily populated area 204,
the risk represented by the risk profile 304A decreases again due
to the exit from the heavily populated area 204.
[0064] The risk profile 304B shows a relatively low risk for the
entire trip of the vehicle system 104B. This low risk may be due to
the vehicle system 104B being formed of a single, light vehicle
that is not carrying any hazardous or heavy cargo. Additionally,
the vehicle system 104B does not travel through any heavily
populated areas 204 or dangerous portions 206 of the routes 202.
But, the risk profile 304B of the vehicle system 104B may be
modified to show an increased risk 310. This increased risk 310 can
represent a change in the weather forecast that shows a high
probability (e.g., greater than 70%) that the vehicle system 104B
will travel through the area 208 of bad weather shown in FIG. 2.
After the vehicle system 104B is expected to exit the area 208 of
bad weather, the risk profile 304B decreases to indicate the
reduced risk due to the vehicle system 104B no longer traveling
through the bad weather.
[0065] The risk profile 304D shows a greater risk for the vehicle
system 104D during an initial portion 312 of a trip than the risk
for the initial portions of the trips of the vehicle systems 104A,
104B. This is due to the vehicle system 104D being longer, having
more vehicles in the vehicle system 104D, and potentially due to
the vehicle system 104D being heavier than the vehicle systems
104A, 104B. The risk profile 304D increases to an upper level 314
due to passage of the vehicle system 104D through the heavily
populated area 204 shown in FIG. 2 before slightly decreasing (due
to the exit from the heavily populated area 204). The risk profile
304D then remains slightly elevated in a subsequent portion 318 of
the trip (relative to the initial portion 312 of the trip) due to
the vehicle system 104D traveling through the area 206 where the
route 202 may include many curves, steep grades, maintenance crews,
or the like. The risk profile 304D then decreases to the initial
risk level upon the vehicle system 104D exiting the area 206.
[0066] The assignment system 100 can then determine an operator
staffing demand for the upcoming trips of the vehicle systems 104
based on the time-variable risk profiles 304 of the separate
vehicle systems 104. The operator staffing demand can be a number
that represents how many operators 102 will be needed to remotely
control and/or monitor the vehicle systems 104, with the number
being based on the risk profiles 304 of the vehicle systems 104.
The operator staffing demand can be expressed as a number that
changes with respect to time to reflect that the risk profiles 304
of one or more vehicle systems 104 changes with respect to time.
The operator staffing demand can be a number that represents a
ratio of vehicle systems 104 that are assigned to the operators 102
to remote monitoring and/or controlling of the vehicle systems 104.
For example, a ratio of two can indicate that a single operator 102
may be assigned to remotely control and/or monitor two different
and separate vehicle systems 104 (that are traveling at the same
time, but on different routes, at different speeds, in different
directions, to different locations, and/or from different
locations).
[0067] The assignment system 100 can determine that more operators
may be needed to remotely control movement of a vehicle system 104
during time periods that the risk profile 304 of the vehicle system
104 is larger, and that fewer operators may be needed during other
time periods when the risk profile 304 is smaller. For example, the
greater risk profile 304D of the vehicle system 104D may result in
the assignment system 100 determining that an operator 102 should
be assigned to remotely control (and monitor) fewer vehicle systems
(including the vehicle system 104D) during the entire trip of the
vehicle system 104D, while another operator 102 that is assigned to
remotely control each of the vehicle systems 104A, 104B can be
assigned additional or more vehicle systems during the entire trips
of the vehicle systems 104A, 104B due to the lower risk profiles
304A, 304B of the vehicle systems 104A, 104B.
[0068] The determination of how many vehicle systems 104 can be
assigned to an operator 102 (or how many vehicle systems 104 that
an operator 102 can be assigned to) may not be a static number. The
assignment system 100 can vary the number of vehicle systems 104
that can be assigned to an operator 102 based on increases (or
decreases) in the risk profiles 304. For example, while the
assignment system 100 may determine that more vehicle systems 104
(including the vehicle system 104B) can be assigned to the same
operator 102 due to the relatively low risk profile 304B of the
vehicle system 104B for the duration of the planned upcoming trip.
The increased risk during the portion 306 in the risk profile 304B
due to the weather area 208 may cause the assignment system 100 to
reduce the number of vehicle systems 104 assigned to the operator
102 that also is remotely controlling the vehicle system 104B
during travel of the vehicle system 104B in the area 208. As
another example, the assignment system 100 may determine that the
number of vehicle systems 104 assigned to the operator 102 that is
controlling the vehicle system 104D may be increased during travel
outside of the heavily populated area 204 and the area 206 due to
the decreased risk at these locations or times, but that fewer
vehicle systems 104 may be assigned to the operator 102 that is
remotely controlling the vehicle system 104D while the vehicle
system 104D travels through the areas 206, 208 associated with the
increased risks.
[0069] In one embodiment, the assignment system 100 can determine
how many vehicle systems 104 can be assigned to the same operator
102 by examining the risk profiles 304 of the vehicle systems 104.
For example, the assignment system 100 may determine a risk
threshold for an operator 102 that is based on the expertise of the
operator 102, the training of the operator 102, the continuous
hours that the operator 102 has been working, and the like. Greater
expertise, more training, and fewer continuous working hours can be
associated with greater thresholds for the operator 102, indicating
that better trained, experienced, and rested operators 102 may be
able to remotely control more vehicle systems 104 at the same time
than an operator 102 with less experience, less training, and/or
who may be fatigued. The risk values represented by the vehicle
systems 104 at different times can be added together, and only
those vehicle systems 104 having a sum total of risk values that do
not exceed the threshold of the operator 102 may be assigned to
that operator 102. Different combinations of the vehicle systems
104 for the operator 102 may be examined.
[0070] The assignment system 100 also can determine how many
operators 102 are needed for remote-control of vehicle systems 104
based on the operational duties to be performed by the operators
102. Some operators 102 may be assigned to a vehicle system 104 to
monitor movement and/or other operations of the vehicle systems
104, but not to control a throttle and/or brake of the vehicle
systems 104. These operators 102 may remotely monitor the vehicle
system 104 to determine if an emergency, accident, or failure is
occurring or about to occur (or that other unsafe or unexpected
conditions arise), and then takeover or assist with controlling
movement of the vehicle system 104 responsive to determining that
the emergency, accident, or failure is occurring or about to occur.
Other operators 102 may be assigned to a vehicle system 104 to
remotely control (and monitor) movement and/or other operations of
the vehicle systems 104. The machines 106 may modify the features,
data, and inputs available to operators 102 based on the assignment
goal (monitor or control). Because the mental attentiveness needed
from an operator 102 to remotely control movement of a vehicle
system 104 is greater than the mental attentiveness needed to
remotely monitor movement of a vehicle system 104 (but not
control), the assignment system 100 can determine that fewer
operators 102 are needed for vehicle systems 104 that are being
monitored, but not remotely controlled (and that more operators 102
are needed for vehicle systems 104 that are remotely controlled).
As a result, the assignment system 100 can assign more vehicle
systems 104 to operators 102 that are remotely monitoring more
vehicle systems 104 (than other operators 102), while fewer vehicle
systems 104 are assigned to operators 102 that are remotely
controlling more vehicle systems 104 (than other operators
102).
[0071] The operator staffing demand that is determined by the
assignment system 100 also can be based on whether any trips of the
vehicle systems 104 require operators 102 to have specialized
qualifications. For example, the assignment system 100 may
determine that vehicle systems 104 having large risk profiles 304
may require operators 102 having at least a designated number of
years' experience in remotely controlling vehicle systems 104. The
assignment system 100 can determine that trips of vehicle system
104 that extend through certain geographic areas (e.g., with
difficult terrain such as the area 206, with dense populations such
as the area 204, etc.) may require operators 102 having experience
in remotely controlling vehicle systems 104 through those types of
areas. The assignment system 100 can determine that vehicle systems
104 carrying heavy and/or hazardous cargo may require operators 102
having specialized training in remotely controlling such vehicle
systems 104. The assignment system 100 can determine that trips of
vehicle system 104 that extend through certain geographic areas
having different or restrictive laws or regulations may require
operators 102 having experience in remotely controlling vehicle
systems 104 through those types of areas, having specialized
training, and/or having specialized licenses. For example, some
areas may have laws requiring that a remote operator 102 have a
certain license issued by a governmental body or agency. The
assignment system 100 can determine that the vehicle system 104
have at least one operator 102 having the required experience,
expertise, licensing, etc., for a trip of the vehicle system 104
that passes through any such areas.
[0072] The operator staffing demand that is determined by the
assignment system 100 can represent a number of operators 102 that
are needed to be available (e.g., onsite at a facility where the
machines 106 are located) for remotely controlling and/or
monitoring the vehicle systems 104 at different times. Because the
risk profiles 304 of the vehicle systems 104 change with respect to
time, the number of operators 102 needed for remote-control and/or
monitoring of the vehicle systems 104 also can change with respect
to time.
[0073] The assignment system 100 can then assign operators 102 to
remotely monitor and/or control the vehicle systems 104 based on
the operator staffing demand and the time-variable risk profiles
304 of the vehicle systems 104. While the determination of the
operator staffing need involves the assignment system 100
determining how many operators 102 are needed (and, optionally,
whether any operators 102 having specialized qualifications are
needed), the assignment of operators 102 to vehicle systems 104 can
involve the assignment system 100 selecting individual operators
102 to remotely monitor and/or control certain vehicle systems
104.
[0074] The assignment of operators 102 can involve the assignment
system 100 sending control signals to the machines 106 of the
operators 102 assigned to different vehicle systems 104. This
control signal can direct the machines 106 to establish
communication with the communication systems 118 of the vehicle
systems 104 being monitored and/or controlled. The assignment
system 100 optionally can send a control signal to the controllers
114 of the vehicle systems 104 to inform the controllers 114 of
which machines 106 will be used to remotely monitor and/or control
the corresponding vehicle systems 104. The operators 102 can then
monitor movement of the vehicle systems 104 to which the operators
102 are assigned by viewing data obtained by or output from the
sensors 112 and/or can then remotely control the movement of the
vehicle systems 104 to which the operators 102 are assigned by
sending control signals from the machines 106 to the controllers
114, which then control the propulsion systems 116 in accordance
with the control signals to implement the remote-control actions by
the operators 102.
[0075] While the assignment system 100 may assign some operators
102 to some vehicle systems 104 based only on how many operators
102 are needed for each vehicle system 104 (based on the risk
profiles 304 of the vehicle systems 104), optionally, the
assignment system 100 can assign one or more operators 102 to a
vehicle system 104 based on other factors. As one example, the
assignment system 100 can assign operators 102 to vehicle systems
104 based on operator qualification levels. Operators 102 that have
more experience, that have received more training, that have
certain licenses, etc., may be assigned to the vehicle systems 104
having the largest risk profiles 304 (e.g., during times when the
risk profiles 304 are larger or largest). Conversely, operators 102
that have less experience, that have received less training, that
do not have certain licenses, etc., may be assigned to the vehicle
systems 104 having smaller risk profiles 304.
[0076] In one example, the assignment system 100 can determine a
required qualification level for remotely controlling a vehicle
system 104 based on the risk profile 304 of the vehicle system 104.
This qualification level can be an operator- or user-defined amount
of experience, training, and/or licensure that an operator 102 is
required to have before that operator 102 can be assigned to a
vehicle system 104 associated with the required qualification
level. Vehicle systems 104 having risk profiles 304 that exceed one
or more thresholds may have required qualification levels that
require an assigned operator 102 to have at least five years'
experience (or another length of time) in remotely controlling
and/or monitoring the vehicle systems 104 having the elevated risk
profiles 304. Other vehicle systems 104 that are planning to travel
through a heavily populated area, areas of forecasted bad weather
conditions, areas with hazardous routes 202, etc., may have similar
qualification level requirements. As another example, a vehicle
system 104 transporting hazardous cargo may require that an
operator 102 have a certain license. In another example, the
required qualification level may change based on the duties to be
performed by an operator 102 for a vehicle system 104. For example,
a vehicle system 104 needing an operator 102 assigned to remotely
monitor data from the sensor 112 onboard the vehicle system 104
(but not control movement of the vehicle system 104) may have a
lower required qualification level than another vehicle system 104
needing an operator 102 assigned to remotely control movement of
the vehicle system 104.
[0077] The assignment system 100 can examine the required
qualification level(s) of a vehicle system 104, and can examine the
qualification levels of operators 102 that may potentially be
assigned to the vehicle system 104. The assignment system 100 may
not assign any operators 102 not having qualifications that meet or
exceed the required qualification levels for the vehicle system
104. The assignment system 100 can assign an operator 102 that has
qualifications that meet or exceed the required qualification
levels for the vehicle system 104.
[0078] The assignment system 100 can assign multiple operators 102
to the same vehicle system 104 based on a training or experience
disparity between the operators 102. For example, the assignment
system 100 can examine the qualification levels of multiple
operators 102 and assign a more experienced or trained operator 102
and a less experienced or trained operator 102 to the same vehicle
system 104. This can permit the less experienced operator 102 to
learn from the more experienced operator 102 during remote-control
and/or monitoring of the vehicle system 104.
[0079] The assignment system 100 can assign operators 102 to
vehicle systems 104 based on geographic regions or areas in which
the vehicle systems 104 are traveling or will be traveling. Certain
operators 102 may have more experience or training in remotely
controlling movement of vehicle systems 104 in certain geographic
regions. For example, one operator 102 may have more experiencing
in remotely controlling vehicle systems 104 traveling through
mountainous regions, while another operator 102 may have more
experiencing in remotely controlling vehicle systems 104 traveling
through heavily populated areas. The assignment system 100 can
examine where the vehicle systems 104 will be traveling and can
examine whether any operators 102 have experience in controlling
vehicle systems 104 in the same geographic area. The assignment
system 100 can then assign the operator or operators 102 having
experience in the area(s) where a vehicle system 104 will travel to
that vehicle system 104.
[0080] In one embodiment, the assignment system 100 can determine
whether to assign an operator 102 to remotely control movement of a
vehicle system 104 based on whether another operator is onboard the
vehicle system 104 (during the movement that would be remotely
controlled). The assignment system 100 can change the risk profile
304 and/or the qualification level required for the remote operator
102 based on the presence or absence of an onboard operator. For
example, the risk profile 304 may decrease and/or the required
qualification level may decrease when there is an operator onboard
the vehicle system 104 to assist the operator 102 that is remotely
controlling movement of the vehicle system 104.
[0081] The assignment system 100 can determine which operator(s)
102 to assign to one or more of the vehicle systems 104 based on
how long the operator(s) 102 have been working to remotely monitor
and/or control the same and/or other vehicle systems 104. For
example, some operators 102 may be assigned to more vehicle systems
104 and/or may be assigned for longer periods of time to remotely
control and/or monitor the vehicle systems 104. This may due to the
expertise and/or training of the operator 102, the low supply of
operators 102 to assign, or other factors. The assignment system
100 can track how long an operator 102 has continuously worked in
remotely monitoring and/or controlling a vehicle system 104 and, if
the operator 102 has continuously worked for longer than a
designated threshold (e.g., six hours, a single work shift, or
another limit), then the assignment system 100 may not assign that
operator 102 to another vehicle system 104. This can help prevent
some operators 102 from working too long in remotely controlling
and/or monitoring vehicle systems 104, which could run the risk of
operator error due to fatigue.
[0082] The assignment system 100 can monitor the fatigue or
alertness of the operators 102 and/or the onboard operators 102
associated with vehicle systems 104 assigned to the operator 102.
For example, the assignment system 100 can include one or more
sensors that monitor characteristics of the operators 102 to
determine if these characteristics indicate that one or more of the
operators 102 is not alert or is becoming fatigued. These sensors
can include a camera (and optionally one or more processors) that
monitors the gaze of an operator 102 to ensure that the operator's
102 eyes are open, attentive, and focused on the input/output
device used by the operator 102 to remotely control and/or monitor
the vehicle system(s) 104. The sensors can include an input/output
device, such as a touchscreen, electronic display with electronic
mouse or keyboard, etc., that provides the operator 102 with
interactive questions. The responses to the questions (and/or how
quickly the operator 102 responds) can be used by the assignment
system 100 to determine if the operator 102 is fatigued or alert.
If an operator 102 becomes fatigued or is not alert, then the
assignment system 100 can avoid assigning vehicle systems 104 to
the operator 102 and/or can re-assign one or more (or all) vehicle
systems 104 assigned to that operator 102 to another operator
102.
[0083] The assignment system 100 can determine which operators 102
to assign to various vehicle systems 104 based on how many vehicle
systems 104 will be remotely controlled and/or monitored by the
operator 102. For example, the assignment system 100 can avoid
having an operator 102 be assigned to too many vehicle systems 104
by using one or more limits on how many vehicle systems 104 can be
remotely monitored and/or controlled by the operator 102. The limit
on how many vehicle systems 104 can be assigned to or with the same
operator 102 can vary based on the qualifications of the operator
102, the duty of the operator 102, and/or the risk profiles 304 of
the vehicle systems 104. For example, operators 102 having more
training and/or expertise may be assigned more vehicle systems 104
than operators 102 with less training and/or experience. Operators
102 that will be assigned to monitor the vehicle systems 104 may be
assigned to more vehicle systems 104 than operators 102 that are
assigned to remotely monitor the vehicle systems 104. Operators 102
that are assigned vehicle systems 104 with lower risk profiles 304
may be assigned more vehicle systems 104 than operators 102
assigned to vehicle systems 104 with larger risk profiles 304.
[0084] The assignment system 100 can change which operators 102 are
assigned to remotely monitor and/or control a vehicle system 104
during a trip (e.g., while the vehicle system 104 is moving). The
assignment system 100 can direct one or more operators 102 to stop
remotely monitoring and/or controlling a vehicle system 104 and can
direct one or more other operators 102 to begin remotely monitoring
and/or controlling the same vehicle system 104. The assignment
system 100 can change the operator assignment for a vehicle system
104 responsive to the risk profile 304 for the vehicle system 104
changing. For example, the risk profile 304 of a vehicle system 104
may change after the vehicle system 104 has departed from a
starting location for a trip, and before the vehicle system 104 has
reached an ending location for the trip. This change may be due to
a variety of changing factors, such as a change in weather
conditions, a change in traffic congestion, a change in a state of
a route 202 (e.g., from no maintenance being performed to
maintenance being performed, from a bridge being lowered to allow
vehicle systems 104 to pass over the bridge to a bridge being
raised to prevent vehicle systems 104 to pass, etc.), detection of
an emergency situation, etc. If the risk profile 304 increases
(e.g., to or above another, larger threshold), then the assignment
system 100 can assign one or more additional operators 102 to
remotely monitor and/or control the vehicle system 104 associated
with the risk profile 304. If the risk profile 304 decreases (e.g.,
below the threshold), then the assignment system 100 can remove one
or more of the operators 102 already assigned to remotely monitor
and/or control the vehicle system 104 associated with the risk
profile 304 to either remotely monitor and/or control the vehicle
system 104 or to stop remotely monitoring and/or controlling the
vehicle system 104.
[0085] As one example, if a vehicle system 104 is involved in an
accident or the risk profile 304 for that vehicle system 104
becomes too large (e.g., exceeds an upper threshold), then a
dedicated expert operator can be assigned to remotely control
and/or monitor the vehicle system 104. This operator 102 may have
much more experience and/or training than other operators 102, and
may be better suited for controlling a vehicle system 104 having
very high risk to continued safe travel.
[0086] The assignment system 100 can change which operators 102 are
assigned to different vehicle systems 104 at different times based
on the need for an operator 102 having specialized qualifications.
For example, if the vehicle system 104 obtains and carries a
hazardous load for a portion of the trip, and there is a need for
an operator 102 having training on remotely controlling a vehicle
system 104 carrying the hazardous load, then the assignment system
100 can assign such an operator 102 and connect the machine 106 of
the operator 102 with the vehicle system 104 while the vehicle
system 104 carries the hazardous load.
[0087] The assignment system 100 can assign or change an assignment
of one or more operators 102 to remotely control and/or monitor a
vehicle system 104 responsive to detecting that an emergency
situation has occurred. The emergency situation can be a collision
or other accident, failure of one or more components of the vehicle
system 104, or the like. The controller 114 of the vehicle system
104 can notify the assignment system 100 of the emergency
situation. Responsive to detecting the emergency situation, the
assignment system 100 can modify the risk profile 304 of the
vehicle system 104 and optionally one or more other vehicle systems
104 that are traveling toward the location of the emergency
situation. The assignment system 100 can automatically assign one
or more additional operators 102 to monitor and/or control the
vehicle system 104 involved in the emergency situation, and/or to
one or more other vehicle systems 104 traveling near or toward the
emergency situation. For example, in the event that a collision or
derailment has occurred involving a first vehicle system 104, the
assignment system 100 can assign an additional operator 102 to
remotely monitor and/or control the first vehicle system 104 and/or
a second vehicle system 104 that is traveling toward the location
of the collision or derailment.
[0088] Optionally, the assignment system 100 may have a restriction
on how often a change in operator assignment occurs. The
restriction can avoid or prevent an operator 102 from frequently
being re-assigned to another vehicle system 104. The assignment
system 100 may not change which vehicle system(s) 104 that an
operator 102 is assigned to more than a designated number of times
per unit time. For example, the assignment system 100 may not
change which vehicle system 104 is assigned to an operator 102 if
that operator has been assigned or re-assigned to another vehicle
system 104 more than three times in the previous hour.
Alternatively, the assignment system 100 may permit more or less
frequent re-assignments of the operators 102.
[0089] The assignment system 100 may have a restriction on when a
change in operator assignment occurs. The restriction can prevent a
vehicle system 104 from changing which operator 102 is remotely
controlling and/or monitoring the vehicle system 104 during times
that the vehicle system 104 is moving and/or located in an area
having an increased risk profile (e.g., the risk profile exceeds a
designated threshold).
[0090] As another example, the assignment system 100 may have a
restriction that does not allow an operator 102 to be assigned to a
vehicle system 104 if the current trip of the vehicle system 104 is
not scheduled to end (or is not expected to end based on a current
location and speed of the vehicle system 104) before a working
shift of the operator 102 ends. For example, the assignment system
100 may not permit operators 102 from remotely monitoring and/or
controlling vehicle systems 104 for longer than a continuous period
of time (e.g., four hours or another length of time) to reduce the
possibility of operator error due to fatigue.
[0091] Another example of a restriction of the change of operator
assignment includes a limit on how many vehicle systems 104 are
re-assigned at the same time. Stated differently, the assignment
system 100 can change an assignment of an operator 102 to remotely
control and/or monitor vehicle systems 104 only when the operator
102 is being re-assigned to at least a designated number of plural
vehicle systems 104. The assignment system 100 may seek to avoid
repeatedly (and often) changing the operator assignment for the
same vehicle system 104. The assignment system 100 may change the
operator assignment for a group of multiple vehicle systems 104,
and not change the assignment for smaller groups of vehicle systems
104. For example, the assignment system 100 may only re-assign at
least three or more (or another lower limit) vehicle systems 104 to
the same operator 102. If less than the lower limit of vehicle
systems 104 needs to be re-assigned to that operator 102, the
assignment system 100 will either try to assign the vehicle systems
104 to another operator 102, will wait to change the assignment to
the operator 102 until there is at least the lower limit of vehicle
systems 104 needing to be re-assigned to the operator 102, or will
not re-assign the vehicle systems 104 to that operator 102.
[0092] The operator 102 can be re-assigned to a group of vehicle
systems 104 based on common characteristics between the vehicle
systems 104 and/or planned travels of the vehicle systems 104. For
example, an operator 102 may be re-assigned to a group of vehicle
systems 104 that all travel or are scheduled to travel in a common
geographic region. The operator 102 may be assigned to those
vehicle systems 104 traveling in the same town, city, county,
state, multi-state region (e.g., the southwestern most six states
of the continuous states in the United States of America), country,
time zone, or the like. If two or more vehicle systems 104 in a
first group travel or are scheduled to travel in different regions,
then the operator 102 may not be assigned to all of the vehicle
systems 104 in the first group. Instead, the operator 102 may be
assigned to a different, second group of vehicle systems 104 (which
may include one or more, but not all, of the vehicle systems 104 in
the first group).
[0093] As another example, an operator 102 may be re-assigned to a
group of vehicle systems 104 that all carry the same type of cargo.
The operator 102 may be assigned to those vehicle systems 104
carrying the same type of hazardous cargo (e.g., all cargo is
corrosive, all cargo is radioactive, or the like). Optionally, the
operator 102 may be assigned to those vehicle systems 104 carrying
the same amount of cargo. For example, in one embodiment, for an
operator 102 to be assigned to several vehicle systems 104, the
vehicle systems 104 must be carrying the same cargo weight or cargo
weight in each vehicle system 104 must be within a designated range
(e.g., 10%) of each other.
[0094] As another example, an operator 102 may be re-assigned to a
group of vehicle systems 104 that all carry or are scheduled to
carry the same type of cargo. The operator 102 may be assigned to
those vehicle systems 104 carrying the same type of hazardous cargo
(e.g., all cargo is corrosive, all cargo is radioactive, or the
like). Optionally, the operator 102 may be assigned to those
vehicle systems 104 carrying the same amount of cargo. For example,
in one embodiment, for an operator 102 to be assigned to several
vehicle systems 104, the vehicle systems 104 must be carrying the
same cargo weight or cargo weight in each vehicle system 104 must
be within a designated range (e.g., 10%) of each other.
[0095] As another example, an operator 102 may be re-assigned to a
group of vehicle systems 104 that all travel in the same direction.
The operator 102 may be assigned to those vehicle systems 104
traveling westward (e.g., more west than north, south, or east),
even if on different routes 202. For example, the assignment system
100 can assign the same operator 102 to remotely monitor and/or
control several vehicle systems 104 traveling in a westward
direction (e.g., a direction that is closer to being directly west
than any other direction) in the same state, while another operator
102 several other vehicle systems 104 traveling in a northern
direction (e.g., a direction that is closer to being directly north
than any other direction) in the same state, and so on.
[0096] Optionally, the assignment system 100 can change which
operator 102 is assigned to a vehicle system 104 based on a request
received from the operator 102. The operators 102 may request a
change in vehicle system assignment due to the operator 102 wishing
to be assigned to certain vehicle systems 104, due to an emergency
involving the operator 102, the operator 102 needing a break, or
for a variety of other reasons.
[0097] Optionally, a passenger 120 (shown in FIG. 1) can be located
onboard a vehicle system 104 with or without an operator 102
onboard the same vehicle system 104. The passenger 120 can provide
a request to the assignment system 100 to change which operator 102
is remotely controlling the vehicle system 104. For example, the
passenger 120 may become concerned that the onboard or off-board
operator 102 that is controlling movement of the vehicle system 104
is placing the passenger 120 in risk. The passenger 120 can request
that the assignment system 100 assign more operators 102 to
remotely control and/or monitor the vehicle system 104 or that
another, different operator 102 be assigned to remotely control
and/or monitor the vehicle system 104.
[0098] If the assignment system 100 determines that a change in
assignment is needed, but that changing the assignment for one or
more operators 102 would violate a restriction, then the assignment
system 100 can assign one or more other operators 102 to the
vehicle system 104, or may not change the assignment of the
operator(s) 102 to the vehicle system 104.
[0099] FIG. 4 illustrates one embodiment of the assignment system
100. The assignment system 100 includes one or more processors 400
(e.g., one or more microprocessors, one or more field programmable
gate arrays, and/or one or more integrated circuits) that perform
the functions that are described herein as being performed by the
assignment system 100. The processors 400 can receive input and/or
provide output to one or more users of the assignment system 100
via one or more input and/or output devices 402 ("I/O Devices" in
FIG. 4). The input/output devices 402 can represent one or more
electronic displays, touchscreens, keyboards, electronic mice,
styluses, microphones, speakers, etc.
[0100] The assignment system 100 includes a communication system
404 that allows the processors 400 to communicate with one or more
other systems or devices. The communication system 404 can include
one or more transceivers, transmitters, receivers, modems, routers,
antennas, or the like, that allow the processors 400 to communicate
with the vehicle systems 104 and with one or more memory sources.
The memory sources shown in FIG. 4 are provided as one example, and
a different combination of memory sources could be used. The memory
sources shown in FIG. 4 can represent tangible and non-transitory
computer readable media, such as computer hard drives, servers,
flash drives, optical discs, etc.
[0101] The memory sources can include a local memory 406 that
stores information at the assignment system 100, such as which
operators 102 are assigned to which vehicle systems 104, which
operators 102 are available, operator staffing needs, schedules of
the vehicle systems 104, operator qualifications, limits or
restrictions on which operators 102 can be assigned to different
vehicle systems 104, and the like.
[0102] The memory sources can include a trip database 408 that
stores trip data. The trip data include information about the cargo
carried by different vehicle systems 104, the schedules of the
vehicle systems 104, the locations of the vehicle systems 104,
and/or identifications of the vehicles in the vehicle systems 104.
The processors 400 can obtain at least some of this information to
assist with assigning operators 102 to vehicle systems 104, as
described above.
[0103] The memory sources can include a route database 410 that
stores route data. The route data include information about the
routes 202 over which the vehicle systems 104 travel or will
travel. This information can include identifications of curves in
the routes 202, undulations in the routes 202, speed limits of the
routes 202, grades in the routes 202, traffic congestion
(historical and/or predicted for upcoming times) in different
areas, locations of the routes 202, areas of the routes 202 that
are under maintenance or other repair, and the like. The memory
sources can include a weather database 412 that stores weather
data. The weather data include predicted weather forecasts,
historical weather conditions, and the like, for one or more areas
through which the routes 202 extend.
[0104] The memory sources can include a workforce database 414 that
stores workforce data. The workforce data include information about
the operators 102, such as trainings completed by various operators
102, experiences of the operators 102, restrictions on which
vehicle systems 104 can be assigned to some operators 102, special
qualifications of operators 102, work hours of the operators 102,
indications of how long operators 102 have continuously worked in
remotely controlling and/or monitoring vehicle systems 104, and the
like.
[0105] The assignment system 100 optionally includes one or more
sensors 416 that can generate data indicative of how alert or
fatigued operators 102 are. The sensors 416 can represent cameras
that generate images or videos of the operators 102 (which can be
manually and/or automatically inspected to check on operator 102
alertness or fatigue), an input/output device that provides
questions, games, or other interactive exercises to test and/or
increase the alertness of operators 102, or the like.
[0106] FIGS. 5A through 5C illustrate a flowchart of one embodiment
of a method 500 for dynamically assigning operators to remotely
control and/or monitor movements of one or more vehicle systems.
The method 500 can represent the operations performed by the
processors 400 of the assignment system 100 in one embodiment. At
502, vehicle systems 104 that are to be remotely controlled and/or
monitored during upcoming trips are identified. These vehicle
systems 104 can be identified by determining which vehicle systems
104 are scheduled to depart on the trips within a designated period
of time (e.g., one working day), by determining which vehicle
systems 104 are associated with a subscription or purchase of a
service to remotely control and/or monitor movements of the vehicle
systems 104, by examining trip data of the vehicle systems 104, or
the like.
[0107] At 504, upcoming trips of the vehicle systems 104 are
determined. These trips can be determined by examining trip data of
the vehicle systems 104. This data can indicate where the vehicle
systems 104 are leaving from, where the vehicle systems 104 are
traveling, and/or where the vehicle systems 104 are headed toward.
Optionally, this information can be provided by an operator onboard
a vehicle system 104, or can be obtained from global positioning
system data (or other location data) received from a vehicle system
104. For example, the processors 400 can track where a vehicle
system 104 is moving based on data received from the vehicle system
104. The upcoming trip for that vehicle system 104 can be routes
202 that the vehicle system 104 is headed toward, even if the trip
of the vehicle system 104 has not yet been planned.
[0108] At 506, risks to the safe travel of the vehicle systems 104
on the upcoming trips are identified. As described above, these
risks can include the transportation of hazardous cargo, travel
through hazardous or difficult sections of a route 202, travel
through hazardous weather conditions, travel through congested
traffic areas, and the like. The risks that are identified can
include static risks and/or time-varying risks, also as described
above.
[0109] At 508, time-varying risk profiles for the vehicle systems
are determined based on the identified risks. As described above,
these profiles 304 can represent how the risks to safe travel of
the vehicle systems 104 increase or decrease over time. At 510, an
operator staffing demand is determined based on the risk profiles.
The operator staffing demand can be determined by calculating how
many operators 102 are needed for remotely controlling and/or
monitoring the vehicle systems 104 based on the risk profiles 304
to achieve an overall acceptable risk (e.g., below some total risk
threshold). This acceptable risk threshold can vary based on a risk
tolerance. For example, larger thresholds can be associated with
systems 100 having increased risk tolerances, while smaller
thresholds can be associated with systems 100 having reduced risk
tolerances. A risk tolerance can depend on a variety of factors,
such as an insurance provider's restrictions or limitations on
insurable operation of the system 100, on a subscriber's requested
risk tolerance, or the like. As described above, increased risk
profiles 304 can require more operators 102, while reduced risk
profiles 304 may require fewer operators 102.
[0110] At 512, a determination is made as to whether one or more
vehicle systems require special operator qualifications. This
determination can involve determining whether one or more vehicle
systems 104 are traveling or will be traveling along hazardous
route conditions, are traveling or will be traveling in hazardous
weather conditions, are carrying hazardous cargo, and the like, as
described above. These conditions may indicate that an operator 102
having specialized qualifications to control and/or monitor the
vehicle system 104 may be needed to assign to the vehicle system
104 associated with the risks requiring specialized
qualification.
[0111] If a vehicle system 104 is associated with a risk requiring
a specialized operator qualification, then flow of the method 500
can proceed toward 514. Otherwise, flow of the method 500 can
proceed toward 516.
[0112] At 514, an operator having a specialized qualification that
is required by a vehicle system is assigned to that vehicle system.
For example, an operator 102 having specialized training and/or
experience in remotely controlling movement of a vehicle system 104
that carries hazardous cargo or that includes a vehicle having
specialized handling rules, may be assigned to a vehicle system 104
that is carrying that hazardous cargo or that includes that
vehicle, as described above.
[0113] At 516, potential assignments of operators to the vehicle
systems are examined. These potential assignments can be determined
by assigning the operators 102 having specialized qualifications to
the vehicle systems 104 requiring such qualifications, and then
assigning the remaining operators 102 to the vehicle systems 104
based on the risk profiles 304 of the vehicle systems 104. As
described above, more operators 102 may be assigned to the vehicle
systems 104 having larger risk profiles 304, while fewer operators
102 may be assigned to the vehicle systems 104 having smaller risk
profiles 304. The potential assignments can be examined to
determine if the assignments violate any limits.
[0114] At 518, a determination is made as to whether the
examination of the potential operator assignments indicates that an
assignment violates one or more limits. As described above, the
processors 400 may limit how many vehicle systems 104 that an
operator 102 can be assigned to, may limit which operators 102 can
be assigned to a vehicle system 104 based on the qualifications of
the operators 102, may limit how long operators 102 can be working
to remotely control and/or monitor the vehicle systems 104, etc.
The processors 400 can examine the potential assignments and
determine if any assignments violate a limit. If an assignment
violates a limit, then flow of the method 500 can proceed toward
520. Otherwise, flow of the method 500 can proceed toward 522.
[0115] At 520, an assignment of one or more operators to one or
more vehicle systems is changed. The operator 102 that was assigned
or potentially assigned to a vehicle system 104 in violation of a
limit can be re-assigned to another vehicle system 104. The
re-assignment of operators 102 may be subject to one or more
additional limits, as described herein, such as not re-assigning an
operator 102 to often or to too many vehicle systems 104.
[0116] At 522, the operators are assigned to the vehicle systems
according to the potential assignments. For example, those operator
assignments that do not violate the limit(s) can be assigned to the
vehicle systems. As described above, this assignment can involve
the machine 106 used by the operator 102 establishing a
communication link with the vehicle system(s) 104 to which the
operator 102 is assigned. Optionally, the operations described in
connection with 510 through 522 can be performed in a single
integrated operational step by solving a single optimization
problem that takes the various factors and constraints described
above into account.
[0117] At 524, the vehicle systems are remotely controlled and/or
monitored using instructions that are sent from the assigned
operators. The vehicle systems 104 can change throttle settings,
speeds, brake settings, and the like, based on instructions
received from the operators 102 who are remotely located. The
operators 102 may be remotely located in that the operators 102 are
not able to see the vehicle systems 104 being controlled by the
operators 102 without the aid of a camera and display showing the
images or video generated by the camera.
[0118] At 526, a determination is made as to whether the risk
profile for one or more of the vehicle systems changes during trips
of the vehicle systems. The risk profile 304 for a vehicle system
104 may change for a variety of reasons, such as unknown or
unplanned route maintenance, a change in weather conditions, a
change in route conditions, a change in traffic congestion, an
accident or failure involving the vehicle system 104, and the like.
If the risk profile 304 for a vehicle system 104 changes (e.g.,
increases), then one or more additional operators 102 may need to
be assigned to the vehicle system 104 and/or one or more operators
102 having specialized qualifications may need to be assigned to
the vehicle system 104. As a result, flow of the method 500 can
proceed toward 528. Otherwise, flow of the method 500 can proceed
toward 530.
[0119] At 528, one or more different and/or additional operators
are assigned to the vehicle system. The increased and/or different
risk associated with the vehicle system 104 can require that more
operators 102 be involved in controlling and/or monitoring the
vehicle system 104, and/or that an operator 102 having a
specialized qualification control and/or monitor the vehicle system
104. One or more of these additional and/or specially qualified
operators 102 can be assigned or re-assigned to the vehicle system
104.
[0120] At 530, a determination is made as to whether an operator
assignment needs to be changed for any of the vehicle systems. An
operator assignment may need to be changed if the operator 102 is
working or will end up working longer than a designated limit, if
an operator 102 requests a change in assignment, if an operator 102
becomes fatigued, or the like. If an operator assignment requires
changing, then flow of the method 500 can proceed toward 532.
Otherwise, flow of the method 500 can return toward 524.
Alternatively, flow of the method 500 may return to another
operation or may terminate.
[0121] At 532, one or more different operators are assigned to the
vehicle system. For example, if an operator 102 has been working
too long in remotely controlling a vehicle system 104, if the
operator 102 requests a different assignment to another vehicle
system 104, if operator 102 requires a break for some other reason,
if the onboard operator 102 or passengers 120 request dedicated
assistance which requires a reassignment, and/or the operator 102
has become fatigued, then an additional and/or replacement operator
102 may be assigned to that vehicle system 104. Flow of the method
500 can then return toward 524. Alternatively, flow of the method
500 may return to another operation or may terminate.
[0122] In one embodiment, a method includes determining
time-variable risk profiles for plural separate vehicle systems
that are remotely controlled by operators that are located
off-board the separate vehicle systems. The time-variable risk
profiles represent one or more risks to travel of the separate
vehicle systems during trips of the separate vehicle systems that
change with respect to time during the trips of the separate
vehicle systems. The method also optionally includes determining an
operator staffing demand for the vehicle systems based on the
time-variable risk profiles of the separate vehicle systems. The
operator staffing demand represents how many of the operators are
needed for remotely controlling the separate vehicle systems at
different times during the trips and a required qualification of
one or more of the operators for remotely controlling the separate
vehicle systems at different times during the trips. The method
also includes assigning the operators to remotely monitor or
control the separate vehicle systems during the trips based on the
time-variable risk profiles and, optionally, based on the operator
staffing demand. The operator assigned to one or more of the
separate vehicle systems changes with respect to time during the
trip of the one or more separate vehicle systems while the one or
more separate vehicle systems is moving along one or more routes
during the trip.
[0123] Optionally, the method includes remotely controlling
movement of at least one of the separate vehicle systems based on
instructions received from at least one of the operators assigned
to the at least one of the separate vehicle systems, and/or
remotely monitoring operation of at least one of the separate
vehicle systems based on instructions received from at least one of
the operators assigned to the at least one of the separate vehicle
systems.
[0124] Optionally, the separate vehicle systems include separate
rail vehicle systems.
[0125] Optionally, the separate vehicle systems include separate
automobiles.
[0126] Optionally, the separate vehicle systems include separate
trucks.
[0127] Optionally, the separate vehicle systems include separate
marine vessels.
[0128] Optionally, the separate vehicle systems include separate
aerial vehicles.
[0129] Optionally, the separate vehicle systems include separate
unmanned aerial vehicles.
[0130] Optionally, the separate vehicle systems include vehicles
traveling or scheduled to one or more of travel on different
routes, travel in different directions, or travel in different
locations.
[0131] Optionally, determining the time-variable risk profiles for
the separate vehicle systems includes identifying one or more
time-varying risks to travel of the separate vehicle systems during
movements of the trips that change with respect to location along
the trips and/or with respect to elapsed time during the trips.
[0132] Optionally, the one or more time-varying risks include one
or more of travel of one or more of the separate vehicle systems
through an urban area, travel of one or more of the separate
vehicle systems through an urban area, travel of one or more of the
separate vehicle systems with a hazardous load, or a weather
condition that changes with respect to time and through which one
or more of the separate vehicle systems is to travel.
[0133] Optionally, determining the time-variable risk profiles for
the separate vehicle systems includes identifying one or more
static risks to travel of the separate vehicle systems during
movements of the trips that do not change with respect to location
along the trips and/or with respect to elapsed time during the
trips.
[0134] Optionally, the one or more static risks include one or more
of a type of load carried by one or more of the separate vehicle
systems, a size of one or more of the separate vehicle systems, a
weight of one or more of the vehicle systems, or a presence of an
onboard operator on one or more of the separate vehicle systems
during the trip of the one or more separate vehicle systems.
[0135] Optionally, determining the time-variable risk profiles for
the separate vehicle systems includes forecasting a change in one
or more characteristics of the trip of one or more of the separate
vehicle systems.
[0136] Optionally, the change in the one or more characteristics of
the trip that is forecasted includes a change in a weather
condition through which one or more of the separate vehicle systems
is traveling toward, a change in traffic congestion through which
one or more of the separate vehicle systems is traveling toward, or
a change in service or maintenance performed on one or more routes
on which one or more of the separate vehicle systems will
travel.
[0137] Optionally, the operator staffing demand is determined by
decreasing how many of the operators are needed for remotely
controlling the separate vehicle systems having reduced risk
profiles and increasing how many of the operators are needed for
remotely controlling the separate vehicle systems having increased
risk profiles.
[0138] Optionally, the operator staffing demand is determined by
increasing how many of the operators are needed for remotely
controlling one or more of the separate vehicle systems responsive
to detection of an emergency situation involving the one or more
separate vehicle systems.
[0139] Optionally, the emergency situation involves an accident
involving the one or more separate vehicle systems or a failure of
the one or more separate vehicle systems.
[0140] Optionally, the method also includes increasing the risk
profile associated with the one or more separate vehicle systems
responsive to detection of the emergency situation.
[0141] Optionally, the operator staffing demand is a number of the
operators required to be onsite at a facility from which the
separate vehicle systems are remotely controlled.
[0142] Optionally, the operator staffing demand is determined as a
time-varying number of the operators that are needed for assignment
to the separate vehicle systems.
[0143] Optionally, the method also includes changing the operator
staffing demand as the time-varying risk profile for one or more of
the separate vehicle systems changes with respect to time.
[0144] Optionally, changing the operator staffing demand includes
changing a ratio of the separate vehicle systems to the operators
assigned to remotely control the separate vehicle systems.
[0145] Optionally, assigning the operators to remotely monitor or
control the separate vehicle systems includes communicatively
coupling one or more of the separate vehicle systems to one or more
of the operators and wirelessly communicating command signals from
the one or more operators to the one or more separate vehicle
systems for remotely controlling movements of the one or more
separate vehicle systems or for remotely monitoring operations of
the one or more separate vehicle systems.
[0146] Optionally, assigning the operators to remotely control the
separate vehicle systems includes changing which of the operators
are assigned to remotely control one or more of the separate
vehicle systems during movement of the one or more separate vehicle
systems during the trip of the one or more separate vehicle
systems.
[0147] Optionally, assignment of which of the operators is assigned
to remotely control one or more of the separate vehicle systems
changes based on a change in the risk profile associated with the
one or more separate vehicle systems.
[0148] Optionally, the method also includes restricting how often
an assignment of one or more of the operators to remotely control
the separate vehicle systems is changed.
[0149] Optionally, changing which of the operators are assigned to
remotely control the one or more separate vehicle systems includes
reallocating a group of two or more of the vehicle systems to the
same operator.
[0150] Optionally, assigning the operators to remotely control the
separate vehicle systems includes determining a required
qualification level for remotely controlling one or more of the
separate vehicle systems based on the risk profile of the one or
more separate vehicle systems, and examining qualification levels
of the operators. The operators can be assigned to the separate
vehicle systems based on the qualification levels of the operators
and the required qualification level of the one or more separate
vehicle systems.
[0151] Optionally, one or more of the required qualification level
or the qualification levels of the operators includes an amount of
operator experience in remotely controlling one or more of the
separate vehicles or an amount of training previously completed by
the operators.
[0152] Optionally, two or more of the operators are assigned to
remotely control movement of the same vehicle system based on one
or more of a training disparity or an experience disparity between
the two or more operators.
[0153] Optionally, the operators are assigned to remotely control
movement of the separate vehicle systems based on geographic
regions in which the separate vehicle systems are traveling or will
travel during the trips.
[0154] Optionally, the operators are assigned to remotely control
movement of the separate vehicle systems based on whether the
operators monitor operations of the separate vehicle systems or
control movement of the separate vehicle systems.
[0155] Optionally, the operators are assigned to remotely control
movement of the separate vehicle systems based on whether an
onboard operator is present on the separate vehicle systems during
the trips.
[0156] Optionally, the operators are assigned to remotely control
movement of the separate vehicle systems based on whether two or
more of the separate vehicle systems assigned to the same operator
one or more of travel or are scheduled to travel in a common
geographic region, carry a common type of cargo, and/or travel or
are scheduled to travel in a common direction.
[0157] Optionally, the operators are assigned to remotely control
movement of the separate vehicle systems based on how long one or
more of the operators has been continuously remotely controlling
movement of one or more of the separate vehicle systems.
[0158] Optionally, the operators are assigned to remotely control
movement of the separate vehicle systems based on a monitored
fatigue level of the operators.
[0159] Optionally, one or more of the operators are assigned to
remotely control movement of one or more of the separate vehicle
systems based on how many of the separate vehicle systems are
assigned to the same operator.
[0160] Optionally, assignment of one or more of the operators to
remotely control movement of one or more of the separate vehicle
systems changes based on a request to change an assignment received
from the one or more operators.
[0161] Optionally, assignment of one or more of the operators to
remotely control movement of one or more of the separate vehicle
systems includes assigning a dedicated expert operator to remotely
control the one or more separate vehicle systems responsive to the
risk profile of the one or more separate vehicle systems exceeding
a designated threshold.
[0162] In one embodiment, a system includes one or more processors
configured to determine time-variable risk profiles for plural
separate vehicle systems that are remotely controlled by operators
that are located off-board the separate vehicle systems. The
time-variable risk profiles represent one or more risks to travel
of the separate vehicle systems during trips of the separate
vehicle systems that change with respect to time during the trips
of the separate vehicle systems. The one or more processors also
are configured to assign the operators to remotely monitor or
control the separate vehicle systems during the trips based on the
time-variable risk profiles. The operator assigned to one or more
of the separate vehicle systems changes with respect to time during
the trip of the one or more separate vehicle systems while the one
or more separate vehicle systems is moving along one or more routes
during the trip.
[0163] Optionally, the one or more processors are configured to
determine the time-variable risk profiles for the separate vehicle
systems by identifying one or more time-varying risks to travel of
the separate vehicle systems during movements of the trips that
change with respect to location along the trips and/or with respect
to elapsed time during the trips.
[0164] Optionally, the one or more processors are configured to
determine the operator staffing demand by increasing how many of
the operators are needed for remotely controlling one or more of
the separate vehicle systems responsive to detection of an
emergency situation involving the one or more separate vehicle
systems.
[0165] Optionally, the one or more processors also are configured
to change which of the operators are assigned to remotely control
one or more of the separate vehicle systems during movement of the
one or more separate vehicle systems during the trip of the one or
more separate vehicle systems.
[0166] In one embodiment, a method includes determining a
time-variable risk profile for a vehicle system that is to be one
or more of remotely controlled or remotely monitored by one or more
operators that are located off-board the vehicle system, and
determining an operator staffing demand for the vehicle system
based on the time-variable risk profile that is determined. The
operator staffing demand represents how many of the operators are
needed for one or more of remotely controlling or remotely
monitoring the vehicle system. The method also includes assigning
at least one of the operators to remotely monitor or control the
vehicle system based on the operator staffing demand and the
time-variable risk profile. The at least one operator assigned to
the vehicle system changes with respect to time during travel of
the vehicle system.
[0167] Optionally, determining the time-variable risk profile for
the vehicle system includes identifying one or more time-varying
risks to travel of the vehicle system that change with respect to
time.
[0168] Optionally, the one or more time-varying risks include one
or more of travel of the vehicle system through an urban area,
travel of the vehicle system with a hazardous load, or a weather
condition that changes with respect to time and through which the
vehicle system is to travel.
[0169] FIG. 6 illustrates one embodiment of a distributed control
system 600. The distributed control system is distributed such that
multiple operators 102 (e.g., 102A-C) located in multiple,
different, and remote locations are able to work on, control
operations, and/or monitor operations of multiple, separate vehicle
systems 104 (e.g., 104A-C). The operators may be in remote
locations when at least one of the operators is off-board the
vehicle system being controlled, with these operators concurrently
controlling operations of the same vehicle system. For example, the
operator 102A may be located onboard the vehicle system 102A to
locally control operations of the vehicle system 102A and another
operator may be located off-board the vehicle system 102A to
control one or more of the same or different operations of the same
vehicle system 102A. The vehicle systems may be separate when the
vehicle systems are not mechanically coupled with each other and
are not traveling with each other. The vehicle systems described
herein may include a variety of different types of vehicles. For
example, the vehicle systems may include rail vehicle systems
(e.g., trains), automobiles, marine vessels, aircraft (e.g.,
drones), etc. and may be manned by one or more operators or be
unmanned (i.e., more autonomous). While the vehicle systems are
illustrated as trains, not all embodiments may be limited to
trains. The vehicle systems are not model or toy vehicles in at
least one embodiment of the subject matter described herein.
[0170] In one embodiment, the distributed control system includes a
highly automated vehicle control system (not shown in FIG. 1) which
is optionally manned by at least one operator disposed onboard the
vehicle system (also referred to as a local or onboard crew member)
and a remote-control system or station 106 that supports another
operator (also referred to as a remote or off-board crew member.
Alternatively, the vehicle system may be controlled by the remote
and local control systems without any human operator disposed
onboard the vehicle system. The remote crew member may use the
remote station to control the operations of multiple vehicle
systems. For example, the remote crew member may use the remote
station to switch between controlling operations of different
vehicle systems at different times and/or controlling operations of
two or more vehicle systems at the same time.
[0171] The vehicle and remote-control systems are communicatively
coupled by one or more networks. These networks can be wireless
networks, such as networks that communicate signals between
wireless communication devices or networks 110, such as antennas,
satellites, routers, etc. The remote crew member or operator may
monitor and/or control operations of the vehicle systems via
signals communicated between the vehicle control system and the
remote-control system via the communication devices.
[0172] In one embodiment, the communication devices may provide for
much longer ranges of control of the vehicle systems than
terrestrial wireless communication devices. For example, the
communication devices can allow for a remote-control system to
communicate with and remotely control vehicle systems over a range
of hundreds or thousands of kilometers from the devices and the
remote-control system. The communication devices may include
satellites or devices that communicate with satellites (e.g.,
antennas and associated transceiving circuitry) that allow for
wireless signals to be communicated between the vehicle systems and
the remote-control system over very large distances of hundreds or
thousands of miles or kilometers. This allows for the remote
operator to remotely control the movement of a vehicle system
without the vehicle system being within eyesight (e.g., the range
of vision) of the remote operator (without use of a camera or
magnifying device).
[0173] The remote operator may control different vehicle systems at
different times. For example, during a first period of time, the
remote operator may cause the remote-control system to generate and
communicate signals to the vehicle control system of the vehicle
system 104A to control operations (e.g., to change or control a
throttle position) of the vehicle system 104A. During a subsequent,
second period of time, the remote operator may cause the
remote-control system to generate and communicate signals to the
vehicle control system of the vehicle system 104B to control
operations (e.g., to change or control a throttle position) of the
vehicle system 104B. The remote operator and remote-control system
may continue to switch between which vehicle system is controlled
during different time periods to allow the remote operator to
concurrently control the operations of several different vehicle
systems. Optionally, the remote operator and the remote-control
system can communicate signals to multiple vehicle systems at the
same time or during overlapping time periods in order to
simultaneously control operations of multiple vehicle systems. The
remote-control system may control movements of these vehicle
systems in an over-the-road environment. For example, instead of
the remote-control system merely controlling movement of the
vehicle systems within a vehicle yard (e.g., a rail yard), the
remote-control system may control the movements of the vehicle
systems along routes that extend between vehicle yards or that are
much larger (e.g., longer) than the vehicle yards.
[0174] The remote-control system may remotely control movements of
different vehicle systems based on conditions of the routes on
which the vehicle systems are moving. For example, the
remote-control system may remotely control movement of a vehicle
system while that vehicle system is traveling on a first segment of
the route that has fewer curves and/or has curves with larger radii
of curvature than a different, second segment of the route.
Responsive to the vehicle system traveling on the second segment of
the route, the remote-control system may pass or hand off control
of the vehicle system to an onboard operator.
[0175] The vehicle control systems onboard the vehicle systems may
control the same or other operations of the vehicle systems as the
remote-control systems. For example, in one embodiment, the
remote-control system may control the throttle or speed command of
a vehicle system during nominal conditions and the onboard operator
of the same vehicle system can monitor the vehicle system and
change the throttle setting, apply the brakes, or otherwise control
operation of the vehicle system in response to identifying an
unsafe situation (e.g., the vehicle system moving too fast, an
obstruction on the route being traveled by the vehicle system,
etc.). Optionally, the remote-control system can control or change
operation of the vehicle system in response to identifying an
unsafe situation (e.g., the vehicle system moving too fast, an
obstruction on the route being traveled by the vehicle system,
etc.).
[0176] FIG. 7 illustrates one embodiment of a vehicle control
system 700. The vehicle control system is disposed onboard the
vehicle system. While the vehicle system is shown as a single
vehicle in FIG. 7, optionally, the vehicle system may include
multiple vehicles traveling together along a route. The vehicles in
a vehicle system may be mechanically coupled with each other or may
be mechanically decoupled or separate from each other but
communicating with each other to coordinate movements of the
vehicles such that the vehicles travel together as a larger vehicle
system.
[0177] The vehicle control system includes a controller 702, which
represents hardware circuitry that includes and/or is connected
with one or more processors (e.g., microprocessors, controllers,
field programmable gate arrays, and/or integrated circuits) that
perform various operations described herein. The controller
receives signals from an input device 704 that receives control
input from the onboard operator of the vehicle system. The input
device can represent one or more throttles (e.g., levers, pedals,
etc.), buttons, touchscreens, switches, etc., that control
operation of the vehicle system. For example, the input device can
be actuated by the onboard operator of the vehicle system to change
a throttle setting of a propulsion system 706 to change how quickly
the vehicle system is moving, to change a brake setting of a brake
system 708, to communicate one or more signals to the
remote-control system (e.g., via a communication device 710 of the
vehicle control system), or to otherwise control operation of the
vehicle system.
[0178] The propulsion system represents one or more engines,
generators, alternators, motors, or the like, that operate to
propel the vehicle system. The brake system represents one or more
brakes of the vehicle system, such as dynamic brakes, friction
brakes, etc. The communication device represents hardware circuitry
used for communicating signals with the remote-control system, such
as one or more antennas, transceivers, routers, or the like. An
output device 712 may present information to the onboard operator,
such as information representative of operations of the vehicle
system (e.g., moving speeds, speed limits, accelerations,
temperatures, fuel levels, etc.), information communicated from the
remote-control system (e.g., speeds at which the vehicle system is
to move, locations where the vehicle system is to brake, etc.), or
other information. The output device can represent one or more
touchscreens (which also may be the input device) or other display
devices, speakers, haptic devices, etc.
[0179] In one mode of operation, the vehicle control system
receives control inputs from the remote-control system and uses the
control inputs to automatically control operation of the vehicle
system. The control inputs can designate operations or operational
settings or parameters of the vehicle system, such as designated
speeds at which the vehicle system is to travel, designated times
and/or locations at which the vehicle system is to brake,
designated accelerations and/or decelerations at which the vehicle
system is to change speeds, locations that the vehicle system is to
move toward, designated throttle settings, etc. The controller of
the vehicle control system can receive these control inputs from
the remote-control system via the communication device of the
vehicle system and automatically control (e.g., without
intervention of the onboard operator) the propulsion system and/or
braking system of the vehicle system to implement the control
inputs.
[0180] The remote-control of the vehicle system can provide the
onboard or local crew member with more time to focus on other tasks
(relative to the onboard or local crew member not having the
remote-control system available for assisting in controlling
movement of the vehicle system). For example, the onboard operator
can have additional time to look for obstructions in the path of
travel of the vehicle system, to monitor operation of the vehicle
system, to perform maintenance, inspection, and/or repair of the
vehicle system, or the like. The system can reduce the skill needed
to manually control movement of the vehicle system, such as by
having the remote-control system provide speed inputs and the
vehicle control system being used by the operator to control the
vehicle system to travel according to the speed inputs.
[0181] For example, the remote-control system may communicate speed
set points, or designated speeds (and/or locations along a route,
distances along a route, or times at which the vehicle system is to
be traveling as the designated speeds) to the vehicle control
system. These speeds may be provided to the vehicle control system
as the vehicle control system is moving, in contrast to a
previously determined or generated schedule or speed trajectory
that is generated prior to movement of the vehicle system. The
vehicle control system can receive and report these speeds to the
onboard operator, and the onboard operator can actuate the input
device onboard the vehicle system to cause the vehicle system to
travel according to the designated speeds. Additionally, the
onboard operator can safely and efficiently return to controlling
movement of the vehicle system should the need arise by providing a
speed input to the local control system, such as when the operator
at the remote-control system is not able to remotely direct
movement of the vehicle system, communication delays or
interruptions prevent the remote-control system from communicating
control inputs to the vehicle control system, etc.
[0182] The controller of the vehicle control system includes
skilled driving knowledge that incorporates vehicle handling and
other information used to determine how to change operational
settings (e.g., throttle and/or brake settings) of the vehicle
system to safely and efficiently control operation of the vehicle
system according to the higher-order control inputs provided by the
remote-control system. For example, the controller may receive
operational set points as control inputs from the remote-control
system and/or from the onboard operator. An operational set point
can represent an operational goal that the vehicle system is to
achieve, such as a moving speed, a location or distance in which
the vehicle system is to stop or slow movement, a location to which
the vehicle system is to travel, a time by which the vehicle system
is to reach a location, an amount of fuel that the vehicle system
is to consume or consume less than during movement, an amount of
emissions that the vehicle system is to generate or generate less
than during movement, throttle settings or positions, brake
settings or positions, etc. The vehicle control system receives the
operational set points and changes the settings of the propulsion
system and/or braking system of the vehicle system so that the
vehicle system achieves the set points.
[0183] As one example, the vehicle control system may receive a
designated speed at which the vehicle system is to travel from the
onboard operator and/or from the remote-control system. The
controller of the vehicle control system may determine a current
speed of the vehicle system (e.g., from a sensor such as a
tachometer, global positioning system receiver, etc.) and compare
the current and designated speeds to determine how to change the
throttle and/or brake settings of the vehicle system to achieve the
designated speed. In one example, the controller can determine
changes in the throttle and/or brake settings that cause the
vehicle system to achieve the designated speed while consuming less
fuel and/or generating fewer emissions than using other, different
changes in the throttle and/or brake settings (e.g., by switching
to the highest throttle setting). In another example, the
controller can determine the changes that reduce the number and/or
size of throttle and/or brake setting changes relative to other
changes, changes in the throttle and/or brake settings that reduce
forces exerted on couplers relative to other changes, etc.
[0184] The controller can control the propulsion and/or braking
systems to try and maintain, on average, the designated set point
and/or to use the set point as an upper limit on the operational
settings of the vehicle system. The controller can project speeds
at which the vehicle system will move (e.g., determine a speed
trajectory) based on the current speed and the changes to the
throttle and/or brake settings in order to determine how to cause
the vehicle system to travel at the set point designated by the
remote-control system or the onboard operator.
[0185] The remote-control system may dictate control inputs that
control operation of the vehicle system at various levels. For
example, the remote operator can use the remote-control system to
provide varying speed set points during a trip of the vehicle
system as a function of locations of the vehicle system such that
the set points change at two or more different locations. For
example, set points may be communicated to the vehicle control
system from the remote-control system as: proceed at time 0530,
stop at location 123 by time 1400; set out car at siding (with
protections and inputs provided by the onboard crew member; stop at
location 53 until given authorization to move by foreman. A simple
language/syntax can be developed for to provide these set points.
The controller of the vehicle control system then transforms these
set points into a speed command trajectory, which is used to
determine the settings of the propulsion and braking systems of the
vehicle system.
[0186] The vehicle control system may receive the operational set
points and determine an operational setting trajectory for a
vehicle system based on the operational set points. For example,
the controller may receive the speed set points provided by the
remote-control system and determine the throttle settings and/or
brake settings that are to be used by the respective propulsion and
braking systems in order for the vehicle system to reach the speed
set points. The controller may examine the grades of the route,
curvatures of the route, weights of the vehicles and/or cargo,
etc., in order to determine the throttle and/or brake settings. For
example, for inclined grades and/or heavier vehicles and cargo,
larger throttle settings may be needed to accelerate to a faster
speed set point than for flatter or declined grades and/or lighter
vehicles and cargo. The throttle and/or brake settings may be
designated for different locations along the route, distances along
the route, and/or times. The controller may then control the
propulsion and/or braking systems to implement the throttle and/or
brake settings in order to achieve the speed set points.
[0187] Optionally, the vehicle control system and/or the onboard
operator of the vehicle system can determine the set points of the
vehicle system and communicate these set points to the
remote-control system via the communication device. The
remote-control system may examine the set points and determine the
operational settings and/or changes to the operational settings of
the vehicle system that can be used to reach or achieve the set
points. The operational settings and/or changes in the operational
settings may be communicated from the remote-control system to the
vehicle control system so the controller of the vehicle control
system can implement the operational settings and/or changes to the
operational settings with the propulsion and/or braking
systems.
[0188] An alerter system 714 of the vehicle control system monitors
physiological features of the onboard operator of the vehicle
system to determine whether the onboard operator is alert and able
to provide sufficient safeguards against unsafe operation of the
vehicle system by the onboard controller and/or the remote-control
system. The alerter system receives monitoring signals from one or
more sensors in a sensor array 716. These sensors can include heart
rate monitors, blood pressure monitors, cameras, the input device
204, etc. The alerter system includes or represents hardware
circuitry that includes and/or is connected with one or more
processors (e.g., microprocessors, field programmable gate arrays,
or integrated circuits) that receive and examine the monitoring
signals from the sensor array. Based on the monitoring signals, the
alerter system can determine whether the onboard operator of the
vehicle system is alert and monitoring operations of the vehicle
system.
[0189] For example, the alerter system can examine the blood
pressure and/or pulse or heart rate and rate variation of the
operator to determine if the operator is alive and alert.
Optionally, the alerter system can examine other sensor data, such
as electroencephalogram (EEG) data, electrocardiogram (ECG) data,
or other contact/wearable measurements of the operator. The alerter
system can receive images or video of the operator to determine
whether the operator is moving at least as often as a designated
frequency (e.g., once every minute, once every hour, etc.). The
alerter system can receive images or video of the operator and use
computer or machine vision techniques to determine postures and/or
gestures of the operator, such as slouching versus upright, raised
eyebrows or closed eyes, yawns or closed mouths, etc., to determine
whether the operator is alert.
[0190] As another example, the alerter system provides cognitive
tasks to the operator (e.g., via the output device) and examines
the operator's performance of the tasks to determine whether the
operator is alert. The cognitive tasks can include directions to
play a game (e.g., tic-tac-toe), directions to perform a series of
examinations of the vehicle system, directions to actuate a
sequence of input devices (e.g., buttons, levers, areas of a
touchscreen, etc.), or other tasks that require the operator to be
alert to perform the tasks. If the operator does not complete the
tasks to at least a specified level of achievement or is unable to
complete the tasks, then the alerter system may determine that the
operator is not alert. Optionally, the cognitive tasks may be
contextual cognitive tasks. These tasks may be similar to the
cognitive tasks previously described, but may require the operator
to perform tasks related to operation of the vehicle system. For
example, the alerter system may direct the operator to manually
input (via the input device) the current location of the vehicle
system, the current ambient temperature, the current weather
conditions, the grade of the segment of the route currently being
traveled upon, or the like. If the operator is unable to complete
the task and/or to perform the task up to at least a designated
level (e.g., the operator is unable to finish a game or is unable
to beat the game), then the alerter system may determine that the
operator is not currently alert.
[0191] In one embodiment, the alerter system contextually examines
the observed operator behavior (e.g., inputs to local control
system) to expected operator behavior generated through an
awareness of vehicle context. For example, the alerter system may
determine when the vehicle system is approaching a grade crossing
and that the expected behavior is for the operator to be attentive
to the crossing and place a hand on or near a horn actuator of the
vehicle system. If the operator does not behave in this manner,
then the alerter system determines that the operator is not
alert.
[0192] Responsive to determining that the operator is not alert,
the alerter system may perform one or more actions. The alerter
system may actuate one or more alarms (e.g., lights, speakers,
etc.) via the output device, the alerter system may direct the
controller to automatically reduce the throttle and/or activate the
braking system of the vehicle system, the alerter system may
communicate a warning signal to the remote-control system, the
alerter system may switch control of one or more operations of the
vehicle system from the onboard operator or vehicle control system
to the remote operator or remote-control system (e.g., control over
the braking system), etc.
[0193] Optionally, the alerter system may monitor physiological
features of an off-board operator at the remote-control system to
determine whether the off-board operator is present and alert
during remote-control of one or more vehicle systems. Responsive to
determining that the off-board operator is not present or is not
alert, the alerter system may pass or hand off remote-control of a
vehicle system to another remote operator or to an operator onboard
the vehicle system.
[0194] In one embodiment, the communication devices and/or the
controllers can monitor the communication or data link(s) between
the communication devices to determine whether to change how the
vehicle system is controlled based on the communication or data
link(s). A communication or data link can represent a connection
between the communication devices to permit communication of data
between the communication devices. The link can be disrupted or
interrupted due to a variety of causes, such as failure of a
communication device, travel of the vehicle system through a tunnel
or valley, electromagnetic interference from sources external to
the vehicle system, etc. The communication or data link between the
remote-control system and the vehicle system can be monitored by
the communication devices and, if the link become interrupted,
destroyed, or too limited (e.g., the bandwidth or speed of the link
decreases below a designated threshold, such as by decreasing by
50% or more), then the communication devices and/or controllers can
assign another remote-control system to control and be
communicatively coupled with the vehicle system.
[0195] The vehicle control system also includes a crew resource
management (CRM) unit or console 718. With the vehicle system being
controlled using a distributed crew of operators, the CRM unit 718
provides for non-verbal communication between the remote and local
operators of the vehicle system. The CRM unit represents hardware
circuitry that includes and/or is connected with one or more
processors (e.g., microprocessors, integrated circuits, field
programmable gate arrays, etc.) that receive signals from the
remote operator via the remote-control system and the communication
device, from the onboard operator via the input device, from the
alerter system, from an alerter system of the remote-control
system, and/or from one or more other locations, and display or
otherwise present this information to the onboard operator of the
vehicle system. For example, if the onboard or remote operator
updates the speed or state of the vehicle system, an indicator
light can be activated on the CRM unit, which notifies the other
operators of the updated speed or state. The CRM unit may require
that the operator in the same location of the CRM unit confirm or
acknowledge the changed speed or state, such as by actuating the
input device. This acknowledgement may be communicated to the
operators (local and remote) to ensure that all operators are aware
of changes in the operations of the vehicle system and are aware
that other operators are aware of the changes.
[0196] FIG. 8 illustrates another embodiment of the remote-control
system 106. The remote-control system includes a communication
device 810, which may be similar or identical to the communication
device of the vehicle control system, to permit the remote and
vehicle control systems to communicate with each other. The
remote-control system also includes a controller 802, which may be
similar or identical to the controller 202 of the vehicle control
system. The controller 802 may perform the operations of the
remote-control system described herein. The remote-control system
also may include an alerter system 814 and sensor array 816 that
operate and perform the same or similar functions as described
above in connection with the same components of the vehicle control
system. This allows the remote-control system to determine whether
the remote operator at the remote-control system is alert. The
remote-control system also includes an output device 812 similar or
identical to the output device 812 of the vehicle control system,
and a CRM unit 818 that is identical or similar to the CRM unit 818
of the vehicle control system.
[0197] The remote-control system can allow a single remote operator
to remotely control operations of several vehicle systems and
maintain awareness of other relevant vehicle systems. The
controller of the remote-control system may generate signals for
display on the output device to represent current states of various
vehicle systems. The remote operator or controller may select a
vehicle system to be controlled, and the remote operator may change
one or more of the operational settings of the selected vehicle
system via the input device of the remote-control system, such as
by setting a set point for the vehicle system. The controller of
the remote-control system may then generate a signal representative
of the set point for communication to the controller of the vehicle
control system to allow for the vehicle system to be controlled.
The remote-control system and/or remote operator may switch between
controlling several different vehicle systems at different times or
allow the operator to control multiple vehicle systems at the same
time.
[0198] The remote operator can have access to significantly more
information about the context of the vehicle systems being
controlled by the remote-control system than any single local
operator of a vehicle system in one embodiment. Because the
remote-control system may be communicating with several vehicle
systems at a time, data representing the states of these vehicle
systems can be aggregated and presented to the remote operator by
the CRM unit 818 via the output device 812. These data include
current locations, speeds, and statuses of the vehicle systems and
the crew members on the vehicle systems (e.g., from the controller,
alerter system, CRM unit, or other data source), the location of
each vehicle system relative to each other and other waypoints, and
physical aspects of the region of operation (e.g., network switch
states, signals from dispatcher, maintenance areas, slippery areas,
etc.).
[0199] FIG. 9 illustrates one example of information presented to
an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system of the
corresponding remote and/or vehicle control system. The information
shown in FIG. 9 can be presented on the output device, such as a
display, to the operator. This information shows an elevation map
900 of the route being traveled by one or more vehicle systems,
along with locations of stops and other relevant waypoints along
the elevation map 900, locations of vehicle systems, and directions
of travel of the vehicle systems indicated on or near the elevation
map 900 (e.g., by the arrow end of the symbols representing the
vehicle systems).
[0200] A network status representation 902 can be presented to the
operator to indicate the current and future states of the vehicle
systems, as estimated or predicted by the controller of the
remote-control system based on current states of the vehicle
systems. The status representation 902 is shown alongside a
horizontal axis 904 representative of time and a vertical axis 906
representative of different locations along a selected route being
traveled by different vehicle systems. In the illustrated
embodiment, several solid lines 906 indicate locations of alternate
or siding routes that a vehicle system may move onto to get off of
the route shown in the map 900 and allow another vehicle system to
pass on the route. Several scheduled movement lines 908 (e.g.,
movement lines 908A-C) represent estimated, scheduled, or predicted
movements of several vehicle systems.
[0201] For example, a movement line 908A can represent the movement
of a first vehicle system 106A along a route 910, a movement line
908B can represent the movement of a second vehicle system along
the route 910, and a movement line 908C can represent the movement
of a third vehicle system along the route 910. This information
presented to the operator by the output device can indicate that
the vehicle system is scheduled to travel in a first direction of
travel along the route 910 without stopping or pulling off onto any
siding routes, while the second vehicle system is to travel in an
opposite direction of travel along the same route 910 to a siding
represented by the route line 906A, pull off of the route 910 onto
the siding 906A and wait for a designated period of time 912, pull
back onto the route 910 and travel to another siding represented by
the route line 906B, pull off of the route 910 onto the siding 906B
and wait for a designated period of time 914, and pull back onto
the route 910 and travel along the route 910. This information also
indicates that the vehicle system is scheduled to travel in the
same direction of travel along the route 910 as the second vehicle
system, but at a later time, and to pull off of the route 910 onto
a siding 906C and wait for a designated period of time 916, pull
back onto the route 910 and travel to the siding 906B, pull off of
the route 910 onto the siding 906B and wait for a designated period
of time 918, and pull back onto the route 910 and travel along the
route 910.
[0202] The remote operator may be assigned with controlling
movement of the vehicle systems traveling along a designated
section of the route 910, such as the portion of the route 910
shown in FIG. 9. Responsive to a vehicle system entering into the
section of the route being controlled by a remote operator, the
vehicle system may begin being controlled by that remote operator.
Prior to the vehicle system entering into this section of the route
and after the vehicle system leaves this section of the route, the
vehicle system may be controlled by other remote operators. The
remote operator in charge of controlling the vehicle systems along
the section of the route may concurrently or simultaneously control
movements of the vehicle systems while those vehicle systems are on
the section of the route.
[0203] FIG. 10 illustrates another example of information presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system
described herein by the corresponding output device. The
information shown in FIG. 10 is an updated version of the
information shown in FIG. 9. For example, as the vehicle systems
move along the route 910, the CRM unit can update and display
actual locations of the vehicle systems along the route as
completed movement lines 1008 (e.g., movement lines 1008A-C).
[0204] Differences 1020, 1022 between the planned or scheduled
movement lines 908 and the actual movement lines 1008 can indicate
vehicle systems moving ahead of or behind schedule. For example,
the difference 1020 can indicate that the first vehicle system is
moving behind schedule along the route 910 and the difference 1022
can indicate that the third vehicle system is moving along the
route 910 even farther behind schedule. This changing information
can provide rapidly discernable updates on locations of the vehicle
systems to the remote operator who is controlling movements of the
vehicle systems. The operator may change how the vehicle systems
are controlled based on the information shown by the output device,
such as by increasing the speed set points of the first and third
vehicle systems and/or extending the period of time 916 that the
third vehicle system remains on the siding 906C.
[0205] FIG. 11 illustrates another example of information presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system
described herein by the corresponding output device. The
information shown in FIG. 11 is an updated version of the
information shown in FIG. 10. For example, as weather conditions
change, graphical weather indicators 1100 may be overlaid or
otherwise shown on the output device. In the illustrated
embodiment, the weather indicators can represent when and where
precipitation (e.g., rain, ice, and/or snow) is predicted by occur,
such as by information provided from meteorologists or from other
sources. The location of the weather indicators can visually inform
the remote operator of when and where weather conditions may impact
movement of the vehicle systems. In response to seeing the weather
indicators, the operator can change how one or more of the vehicle
systems are controlled, such as by slowing movement of the vehicle
systems, increasing braking distances of the vehicle systems,
etc.
[0206] FIG. 12 illustrates another example of information presented
to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system
described herein by the corresponding output device. The
information shown in FIG. 12 represents at least some of the
monitoring information obtained by the alerter system of one or
more of the remote and/or vehicle control systems and presented to
one or more operators via the output device to allow the operators
off-board (and, optionally, onboard) the vehicle systems to monitor
operations of the vehicle systems and alertness of the onboard
operators of the vehicle systems.
[0207] An operational setting chart 1200 presents settings of the
vehicle system at different times. This chart 1200 can illustrate,
for example, a setting 1210 of the braking system of the vehicle
system (e.g., the position of an air brake handle), a pressure 1212
of air in the braking system of the vehicle system, a position 1214
of an individual brake of a vehicle in the vehicle system, and/or
other information. The information shown in the chart 1200 can be
obtained by and/or provided from the controller and/or the CRM unit
of the vehicle control system and communicated to the CRM unit of
the remote-control system via the communication devices.
[0208] An operational input chart 1202 presents the onboard
operator-controlled settings of the vehicle system at different
times. This chart 1202 can illustrate, for example, a designated
throttle setting or position 1216 (e.g., as determined or dictated
by the remote-control system and communicated to the vehicle
control system), an actual throttle setting or position 1218 (e.g.,
the throttle position actually used by the onboard operator), a
horn indicator 1220 (e.g., representing if and/or when the horn or
other alarm system of the vehicle system is activated), a bell
indicator 1222 (e.g., representing if and/or when another bell or
other alarm system of the vehicle system is activated), and/or an
alerter indicator 1224 (e.g., represent if and/or when the alerter
system onboard the vehicle system detects that the onboard operator
is not alert). Alternatively or additionally, other information may
be presented. This chart 1202 can be examined to determine whether
the onboard operator is controlling or attempting to control the
vehicle system according to the designated operational settings
provided by the remote-control system.
[0209] A speed chart 1204 presents designated moving speeds 1226 of
the vehicle system (e.g., as determined by the remote-control
system), speed limits 1228 of the route, and actual moving speeds
1230 of the vehicle system at different times and/or locations
along the route. This chart 1204 can be examined by the remote
operator to determine if and/or when the vehicle system is
violating any speed limits and/or if the vehicle system can move at
a faster speed.
[0210] An elevation chart 1206 presents elevations or grades of the
route being traveled by the vehicle systems at different or
locations along the route. An operator fatigue chart 1208 presents
information related to the alertness of the onboard operator. The
data used to generate the chart 1208 may be obtained by the alerter
system and/or vehicle control system. If the chart 1208 indicates
the alertness of the onboard operator of a vehicle system, then the
alerter system onboard the vehicle system can obtain the data used
to generate the chart from the sensor array also onboard the
vehicle system, and communicate this information to the CRM unit in
the remote-control system. If the chart 1208 indicates the
alertness of the off-board operator of the remote-control system,
then the alerter system of the remote-control system can obtain the
data used to generate the chart from the sensor array of the
remote-control system, and communicate this information to the CRM
unit onboard one or more vehicle systems and/or in another
remote-control system. The operators can monitor the information
shown in the chart 1208 to determine if the remotely located
operator (e.g., onboard a vehicle system or at a remote-control
system) is alert. Examples of the information that can be presented
in the chart 1208 include percentages of responses obtained from
the operator when queried to provide a response by the alerter
system, a number of times the glances of the operator changes
(e.g., as determined by examining images or video of the operator),
or other information.
[0211] The data from multiple different charts can be examined and
compared to determine if the operator is alert. For example, the
charts may have a common (e.g., the same) horizontal axis so that
simultaneous events appear at the same locations along the
horizontal axes of the charts. As one example, if an operator at a
remote-control system is monitoring the alertness of an operator
onboard a vehicle system, the off-board operator can determine if
the fatigue chart indicates that the operator is not alert at the
same times as or prior to times when the throttle settings change
in the chart 1202, and/or if the throttle is being changed later
than the designated changes in throttle. If the onboard operator is
slow to change the throttle and/or brake settings, is violating
speed limits, and/or the alerter system is providing data
indicating that the operator is not alert, then the remote-control
system can generate one or more alarms (e.g., onboard the vehicle
system via the output device) to awaken the operator or to cause
the operator to become more alert, can automatically slow or stop
movement of the vehicle system, can send signals to another vehicle
system to approach and/or check on the operator that appears to not
be alert, etc.
[0212] Distributing at least part of the control system of vehicle
systems to an off-board location can allow for a remotely located
operator to assist in controlling the movements of several separate
vehicle systems. This operator may be able to more easily switch
between controlling and/or assisting in the control of multiple
vehicle systems than onboard operators, which can allow for the
off-board operator to concurrently or simultaneously assist in
controlling and/or control multiple vehicle systems. The off-board
operator may be replaced by another off-board operator when a
contractual or other work shift of the off-board operator ends,
which can allow for the vehicle systems to continue moving while
not losing the assistance of the off-board operator. Otherwise, the
vehicle systems may have to stop for a crew change to allow for the
operators having work shifts that are ending to be removed from the
vehicle systems and replaced by other operators. Additionally, the
off-board operator may be more highly trained, have more
specialized training, and/or be more experienced than operators
onboard the vehicle system, and this greater experience, higher
training, and/or specialized training can allow for the operator to
work at the remote-control system such that the experience and/or
training of the operator is used to control and/or assist in
controlling the movement of several different vehicle systems.
[0213] In one embodiment, multiple operators at the same and/or
different remote-control systems can assist in controlling and/or
control operations of the same vehicle system. For example, a first
off-board operator may control the operational settings of a first
propulsion-generating vehicle in the vehicle system while a second
off-board operator (at the same or different remote-control system)
may control the operational settings of a second
propulsion-generating vehicle in the same vehicle system.
Alternatively, the off-board operators may control different
settings of the same vehicle, such as one off-board operator
controlling speed, another off-board operator monitoring the
alertness of an onboard operator, another off-board operator
monitoring brake pressures, etc., of the same vehicle.
[0214] The number and/or responsibilities of the off-board
operators monitoring and/or controlling a vehicle system can change
based on an operational state of the vehicle system, such as when
one or more circumstances or scenarios occur. For example,
responsive to determining that the vehicle system is entering a
more densely populated area (e.g., an urban area) than a previous
area, the number of remote operators controlling and/or assisting
in controlling the vehicle system may increase. Conversely,
responsive to determining that the vehicle system is entering a
less densely populated area than a previous area, the number of
remote operators controlling and/or assisting in controlling the
vehicle system may decrease. As another example, responsive to
determining that cargo carried by the vehicle system hazardous
and/or has a higher priority than other vehicle systems (e.g., a
shipping arrangement for the cargo has a higher value than other
shipping arrangements), the number of remote operators controlling
and/or assisting in controlling the vehicle system may increase. As
another example, responsive to determining that the vehicle system
is traveling in an area having increased traffic of other vehicle
systems, that one or more components of the vehicle system have
failed or are likely to fail, and/or that one or more onboard
operators are no longer alert, the number of off-board operators
controlling and/or assisting in controlling the vehicle system may
increase.
[0215] The controller of the remote-control system may determine
when one or more of these scenarios occur based on data obtained
from the vehicle system. For example, the vehicle system may
include one or more location determining devices, such as a global
positioning system receiver, a radio frequency identification tag
reader, a dead reckoning system, or the like, that can report back
locations of the vehicle system to the remote-control system. The
remote-control system may have access to the trip manifest of the
vehicle system to determine the cargo being carried by the vehicle
system. The sensor array can provide data representative of the
onboard operator alertness and/or the operational health of
components of the vehicle system. Based on this and/or other data,
the remote-control system can determine when to increase and/or
decrease the number of off-board operators to assign to controlling
operations of the same vehicle system. In one aspect, the off-board
operators may be located at different remote-control systems or
terminals, and the controller of a remote-control system may
connect or disconnect the communication device of additional
remote-control systems with each other and/or the vehicle system to
change the number of off-board operators assisting with control of
the same vehicle system.
[0216] FIGS. 13 through 17 illustrate additional examples of GUIs
1300, 1400, 1500, 1600, 1700 presented to an operator of the remote
and/or vehicle control system shown in FIG. 1 of the corresponding
remote and/or vehicle control system. The GUI shown in FIGS. 13
through 17 can be presented on the output device, such as a
display, to the operator. This GUI shows a horizontal, linear map
of a route 910 being traveled by several vehicle systems, along
with locations of stops and other relevant waypoints along the
route 910, locations of the vehicle systems, and directions of
travel of the vehicle systems.
[0217] A network status representation or map 1302 is presented to
the operator to indicate the current and future states of the
vehicle systems, as estimated or predicted by the controller of the
remote-control system based on current states of the vehicle
systems. The status representation is shown alongside a horizontal
axis 1304 representative of different locations along a selected
route being traveled by different vehicle systems and alongside a
vertical axis 1306 representative of time. Several movement lines
908 (e.g., movement lines 908D-F) represent estimated, scheduled,
or predicted movements of several vehicle systems (e.g., the
vehicle systems 104D-F), similar to as described above. In the
illustrated example, the arrow heads on the ends of the movement
lines and/or the slope of the movement lines indicate that the
vehicle systems 104D, 104E are moving along the route in a
left-to-right direction in the perspective of FIGS. 13 through 17
(e.g., a negative slope) and that the vehicle system 104F is moving
along the route in an opposite direction (e.g., as indicated by the
positive slope). The intersection of the movement lines with
different time (e.g., vertical axis) and distance (e.g., horizontal
axis) coordinates indicate where the vehicle systems will be
located at different times.
[0218] For example, the movement line 908D can represent the
movement of a fourth vehicle system 104D along the route, the
movement line 908E can represent the movement of a fifth vehicle
system 104E along the route, and the movement line 908F can
represent the movement of a sixth vehicle system 104F along the
route (in a direction that is opposite that of the direction of
movement of the vehicle systems 104D, 104E). The movement line 908D
includes a vertical or predominately vertical (e.g., more vertical
than horizontal) portion 1310. This portion 1310 indicates that
movement of the fourth vehicle system is paused or at least slowed
for a time period over which the portion 1310 extends (e.g., along
the vertical axis). The fourth vehicle system may, for example,
pull off of the route onto a siding route or other route for this
time period at the location of the portion 1310 along the route to
allow the vehicle system 104F to pass the vehicle system 104D along
the route.
[0219] The movement line 908E also includes a vertical or
predominately vertical portion 1308. This portion 1308 indicates
that movement of the vehicle system 104E is paused or at least
slowed for a time period over which the portion 1308 extends. The
vehicle system 104E may, for example, pull off of the route 910
onto a siding route or other route for this time period at the
location of the portion 1308 along the route to allow the vehicle
system 104F to pass the vehicle system 104E along the route.
[0220] Passage of the vehicle system 104F by the vehicle systems
104D, 104E as the vehicle systems 104D, 104E are stopped or slowed
is shown in the GUI by the movement line 908F of the vehicle system
104F intersecting or crossing over the movement lines 908D, 908E of
the vehicle systems 104D, 104E.
[0221] The remote operator may be assigned with controlling
movement of the vehicle systems traveling along a designated
section of the route, such as the portion of the route shown in
FIGS. 13 through 17. Responsive to a vehicle system entering into
the section of the route being controlled by a remote operator, the
vehicle system may begin being controlled by that remote operator.
Prior to the vehicle system entering into this section of the route
and after the vehicle system leaves this section of the route, the
vehicle system may be controlled by other remote operators. The
remote operator in charge of controlling the vehicle systems along
the section of the route may concurrently or simultaneously control
movements of the vehicle systems while those vehicle systems are on
the section of the route.
[0222] FIG. 14 illustrates another example of a GUI 1400 shown to
an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system by the
corresponding output device. The GUI 1400 represents the current
statuses (e.g., relative locations, speeds, etc.) of the vehicle
systems at a time subsequent to the time represented by the GUI
shown in FIG. 13. For example, as the vehicle systems move along
the route, the CRM unit can update and display actual locations of
the vehicle systems along the route as completed movement lines
(e.g., movement lines 1008D-F). The completed movement lines
represent portions of the scheduled movement lines 908D-F that the
vehicle systems have completed travel over. The completed movement
lines 1008 may be shown in a different manner than the scheduled
movement lines 908, as shown in FIG. 14.
[0223] In the illustrated example, the vehicle system 104F has
discovered and/or reported a faulty signal along the route at a
fault location 1402. This (and/or other faults or factors) may
result in the vehicle system 104F traveling behind schedule. The
movement of the vehicle system 104F behind schedule is represented
by a difference 1422 between the scheduled movement line 908F and
the completed movement line 1008F of the vehicle system 104F, as
shown in the GUI. The operator of the control system or
remote-control system may view the GUI to determine the location
1402 of the faulty signal (e.g., for re-routing or changing the
schedules of one or more other vehicle systems based thereon)
and/or that the vehicle system 104F is moving behind schedule.
[0224] FIG. 15 illustrates another example of a GUI 1500 shown to
an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system by the
corresponding output device. The operator of the remote-control
system may generate a notification 1502 that informs one or more of
the vehicle systems of a change or deviation from scheduled
movements of the vehicle systems. In the illustrated example, the
remote-control system generates a signal that is wirelessly
communicated (and/or communicated via one or more wired
connections) to the vehicle system 104D to provide the notification
1502 to the vehicle system 104D. This notification 1502 can direct
the vehicle system 104D to change speeds, such as by slowing down
(in this example), speeding up, or otherwise deviating from the
scheduled movement line 908D for the vehicle system 104D. In
response to receiving the notification 1502, the controller of the
vehicle system 104D may direct the propulsion system to reduce
tractive effort or propulsive force generated by the propulsion
system and/or may direct the braking system to increase braking
effort generated by the braking system.
[0225] FIG. 16 illustrates another example of a GUI 1600 shown to
an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system by the
corresponding output device. The GUI 1600 includes an icon 1602
that represents the location of the faulty signal described above.
The GUI 1600 also includes an additional scheduled movement line
908G and a completed movement line 1008G for an additional vehicle
system 104G. As shown, the completed movement lines 1008D, 1008E
for the vehicle systems 104D, 104E deviate from the scheduled
movement lines 908D, 908E. This can inform the operator that the
vehicle systems 104D, 104E are traveling behind schedule. With
respect to the vehicle system 104D, the operator may remotely
control the vehicle system 104D to speed up to catch up to the
scheduled movement line 908D. For example, while the vehicle system
104D slowed down relative to the speeds dictated by the scheduled
movement line 908D, the vehicle system 104D may have been sped up
by the remotely located operator so that the vehicle system 104D
returns to traveling according to the movement line 908D, as shown
in FIG. 16.
[0226] FIG. 17 illustrates another example of a GUI 1700 shown to
an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system by the
corresponding output device. The GUI 1700 includes the graphical
weather indicators 1100 that are overlaid or otherwise shown on the
output device, as described above. The weather indicators can
represent when and where precipitation (e.g., rain, ice, and/or
snow) is predicted by occur, such as by information provided from
meteorologists or from other sources. The location of the weather
indicators can visually inform the remote operator of when and
where weather conditions may impact movement of the vehicle
systems. In response to seeing the weather indicators, the operator
can change how one or more of the vehicle systems are controlled,
such as by slowing movement of the vehicle systems, increasing
braking distances of the vehicle systems, etc.
[0227] FIGS. 18A and 18B illustrate another example of a GUI 1800
shown to an operator of the remote and/or vehicle control system
shown in FIG. 1 by the corresponding output device. The GUI 1800
may be presented to the operator concurrently or simultaneously
with presentation of one or more other GUIs described herein (e.g.,
on different portions of the same output device, on different
output devices, etc.). The GUI 1800 provides a visual
representation of a case manager that allows the operator to select
different vehicle systems to control based on other information
presented on the GUIs described herein. The GUI 1800 presents a map
1802 that indicates a current location of a vehicle system. The map
1802 includes icons indicative of scheduled and/or unscheduled
events 1804 that the vehicle system has encountered. For example,
the icons shown in FIGS. 18A and 18B indicate that the vehicle
system arrived early at a meet-and-pass event 1804A, that an
equipment failure event 1804B was discovered, that the vehicle
system performed an unscheduled stop event 1804C, and so on.
[0228] The GUI 1800 can serve as a case manager to allow a remote
operator (represented by an operator display portion 1806) to
select different vehicle systems to be remotely controlled by the
remote operator. Icons indicative of scheduled events 1808 of the
vehicle system that is selected by the operator are displayed to
the remote operator. In the illustrated example, the operator can
view these icons to determine which actions that the operator is to
achieve by remotely controlling movement of the vehicle system
(e.g., start a trip at a scheduled time, reach a signal at a
diverging route, proceed from a siding section of route, and end
the trip at a scheduled time). The operator can use these icons as
a sort of checklist to ensure that the scheduled actions of the
vehicle system are completed.
[0229] FIG. 19 illustrates a flowchart of one embodiment of a
method 1900 for distributed vehicle system control. The method 1900
may be performed by one or more embodiments of the control systems
described herein. For example, the method 1900 can represent
operations performed by one or more of the components of the
vehicle control system and/or the remote-control system (such as
the controllers, the alerter systems, the CRM units, etc.), as
described above. In one embodiment, the method 1900 may represent
or be used to create a software program for directing the
operations of the vehicle control system and/or the remote-control
system.
[0230] At 1902, information about one or more vehicle systems that
are to be remotely controlled is obtained. This information can
include make up information, which indicates or represents the
vehicles in the vehicle systems (e.g., by model number, road
number, horsepower capability, braking capability, etc.), the cargo
carried by the vehicle systems, the scheduled routes to be taken by
the vehicle systems, the schedules of the vehicle systems, etc.
This information may be received from a variety of sources, such as
a dispatch or scheduling facility, the vehicle systems themselves,
or the like.
[0231] At 1904, a remote operator is communicatively coupled with
at least one vehicle system. For example, the remote-control system
can communicate one or more signals with the vehicle control system
of the vehicle system via a communication network that includes
and/or is formed from the communication devices. The assignment of
which remote operator is to be communicatively coupled with the
vehicle systems may be made based at least in part on the
information received at 1902. Different off-board or remote
operators may be associated with different geographic areas. For
example, the vehicle systems traveling through a geographic area
associated with a remote operator may be assigned to,
communicatively coupled with, and remotely controlled by that
remote operator during travel through that geographic area. But,
the vehicle systems may be assigned to another, different remote
operator responsive to exiting that geographic area or entering
into another geographic area associated with the other, different
remote operator. This can allow for different operators to become
familiar with or have increased expertise with controlling movement
of a vehicle system through different areas (relative to other
operators), and assigning those operators to control the vehicle
systems traveling in the areas associated with the operators.
[0232] At 1906, operations of the vehicle system and/or operator
alertness are monitored. The operations of the vehicle system that
are monitored can include throttle positions, brake settings,
speeds, accelerations, etc. The operator alertness can be monitored
by measuring physiological conditions of an onboard operator, such
as respiration rate, heart rate, movements, glances, etc. In one
aspect, 1906 can include receiving information from one or more
operational systems and/or off-board systems. For example, the
operations of the vehicle system may be monitored by receiving
information about the vehicles and/or cargo included in the vehicle
system.
[0233] At 1908, a determination is made as to whether operations of
the vehicle system are to be changed. This determination may be
made based on the vehicle system operations and/or the operator
alertness that are monitored. For example, if the vehicle system is
moving faster or slower than a designated speed, is operating with
a different throttle and/or brake setting than designated by the
remote-control system, or is otherwise deviating from a designated
operation, the remote-control system may determine to change the
operation of the vehicle system to return the vehicle system to
moving according to the designated operation. As another example,
if the onboard operator is no longer alert, then the remote-control
system may decide to activate an alarm to contact the onboard
operator, to change movement of the vehicle system, or otherwise
modify how the vehicle system is operating. If operation of the
vehicle system is to be changed, then flow of the method 1900 can
proceed toward 1910. Otherwise, flow of the method 1900 can proceed
toward 1912.
[0234] At 1910, the change in operation in the vehicle system is
communicated from the remote-control system to the vehicle control
system. This change in operation may be communicated as a
designated set point or other instruction that is communicated via
the communication devices to the vehicle control system. At 1912, a
determination is made as to whether the operator ratio or
assignment of the vehicle system is to be changed. The operator
ratio represents the number of off-board operators controlling
operations of the vehicle system. For example, an operator ratio
may be calculated as the number of off-board or remote operators to
the number of onboard operators controlling movement of the vehicle
system, the number of off-board or remote operators to the total
number of off-board and onboard operators controlling movement of
the vehicle system, or another number. The operator ratio can be
changed responsive to a change in operational circumstances or
scenarios. For example, responsive to determining that the vehicle
system is entering a more densely populated area than a previous
area, the number of remote operators controlling and/or assisting
in controlling the vehicle system may increase.
[0235] Responsive to determining that cargo carried by the vehicle
system hazardous and/or has a higher priority than other vehicle
systems, the number of remote operators controlling and/or
assisting in controlling the vehicle system may increase. As
another example, responsive to determining that the vehicle system
is traveling in an area having increased traffic of other vehicle
systems, that one or more components of the vehicle system have
failed or are likely to fail, and/or that one or more onboard
operators are no longer alert, the number of off-board operators
controlling and/or assisting in controlling the vehicle system may
increase. This may be done automatically by the remote and/or
vehicle control system or manually by a supervisor or consensus of
the remote operators.
[0236] In addition or as an alternate to changing the operator
ratio, the operator assignment may be modified. The operator
assignment is the indication of which vehicle system is being at
least partially monitored and/or controlled by a remote operator. A
remote operator can be assigned to several vehicle systems, as
described above. The assignment of a remote operator to a vehicle
system can be determined by the remote-control system, such as by
determining which vehicle systems are traveling in (and/or are
scheduled to travel into or through) a geographic area (e.g.,
geo-fence) associated with a remote operator (and then assigning
those vehicle systems to the remote operator). As another example,
the assignment of a remote operator can be determined based on
which skills are needed to remotely control a vehicle system. Some
vehicle systems may be carrying hazardous cargo, may be traveling
through difficult terrain (e.g., a series of curves, urban areas,
etc.), may be more difficult to control relative to other vehicle
systems (e.g., due to the number of propulsion-generating vehicles,
the weight of the cargo and/or vehicles, the age of the vehicles,
etc.), may have systems or controls that require specialized
training, or otherwise may require a set of skills that not all
operators have.
[0237] As another example, the assignment of a remote operator can
be determined based on a work history of the operator. An operator
that has remotely monitored and/or controlled a particular vehicle
system or a particular type of vehicle (e.g., based on model
number, age, etc., of the propulsion-generating vehicles in the
vehicle system) more than another operator may be assigned to
remotely control that same vehicle system or type of vehicle system
instead of the other operator. As another example, the assignment
of a remote operator can be determined based on a current working
shift of the operator. For example, if a remote operator is nearing
the end of a contractually agreed upon or assigned work shift,
another remote operator that has more available time during his or
her work shift may be assigned to a vehicle system to avoid
exceeding the work shift.
[0238] If the operator ratio or assignment is to change, then flow
of the method 1900 may proceed toward 1914. Otherwise, flow of the
method 1900 can return toward 1906. The method 1900 may proceed in
a loop-wise manner until terminated, until completion of a trip of
the vehicle system, and/or until a vehicle system being remotely
controlled leaves the section of the route being controlled by the
remote-control system.
[0239] At 1914, an allocation or assignment of remote operators
controlling the same vehicle system is changed. For example, if the
determination at 1912 reveals that more remote operators are needed
to remotely control movement of a vehicle system, then one or more
additional remote operators begin remotely controlling movement of
the vehicle system. Conversely, if the determination at 1912
reveals that fewer remote operators are needed to remotely control
movement of a vehicle system, then one or more remote operators
currently controlling movement of the vehicle system are assigned
to other tasks that do not include remotely controlling movement of
the vehicle system.
[0240] In one embodiment, a distributed control system includes a
remote-control system configured to be communicatively coupled with
plural separate vehicle systems. The remote-control system is
configured to remotely control operation of the vehicle systems
and/or communicate with the local vehicle control system or
operator. The remote-control system also is configured to one or
more of change how many of the vehicle systems are concurrently
controlled by the remote-control system or change how many remote
operators of the remote-control system concurrently control the
same vehicle system of the vehicle systems.
[0241] In one example, the remote-control system is configured to
control the operation of the vehicle systems without any operator
disposed onboard the vehicle systems during movement of the vehicle
systems.
[0242] In one example, the remote-control system is configured to
control the operation of the vehicle systems by designating
operations of the vehicle systems and communicating instructions to
onboard operators of the vehicle systems to implement the
designated operations. The designated operations include one or
more of designated throttle positions, designated brake settings,
or designated speeds.
[0243] Optionally, the remote-control system is configured to
remotely control the movements of the vehicle systems by providing
operating parameters and limits on the movements of the vehicle
systems. The operating parameters can include one or more of
designated speeds, designated throttle settings, or designated
brake settings. The limits can include one or more of designated
upper limits on speeds, designated upper limits on throttle
settings, designated lower limits on speeds, or designated lower
limits on throttle settings.
[0244] In one example, the remote-control system is configured to
change a number of vehicle systems the remote operator concurrently
controls based on an operating state of the vehicle systems being
concurrently controlled or based on operator input.
[0245] In one example, the operating state includes the vehicle
system entering into or approaching a particular geographic region
of interest.
[0246] In one example, the operating state includes the vehicle
system transporting hazardous cargo or has another high-risk
attribute.
[0247] In one example, the remote-control system is configured to
remotely control the operation of the vehicle systems via one or
more wireless networks.
[0248] In one example, the remote-control system is configured to
remotely control the operation of the vehicle systems by
designating operational set points that vehicle control systems
disposed onboard the vehicle systems are to one or more of maintain
or use as upper limits on operations of the vehicle systems.
[0249] In one example, the remote-control system includes an
alerter system configured to obtain sensor data from one or more
sensor arrays that monitor one or more of physiological conditions
of one or more onboard operators or off-board operators of the
vehicle systems or movements of the one or more onboard operators
or off-board operators. The alerter system is configured to
determine whether the one or more onboard operators or off-board
operators are controlling the operation of the vehicle system based
on the sensor data.
[0250] In one example, the sensor data includes one or more of
images or video of the one or more onboard operators or off-board
operators.
[0251] In one example, the sensor data includes one or more of
pulse rates, respiration rates, blood pressures, or movements of
the one or more onboard operators or off-board operators.
[0252] In one example, the sensor data includes one or more of
electroencephalogram (EEG) data, electrocardiogram (ECG) data, or
other contact/wearable measurements of the one or more onboard
operators or off-board operators.
[0253] In one example, the alerter system is configured to obtain
the sensor data from the one or more sensor arrays that monitor the
one or more physiological conditions of one or more onboard
operators. The alerter system can be configured to communicate the
sensor data to one or more off-board operators at the
remote-control system.
[0254] In one example, the alerter system is configured to obtain
the sensor data from the one or more sensor arrays that monitor the
one or more physiological conditions of one or more off-board
operators. The alerter system can be configured to communicate the
sensor data to one or more onboard operators at the remote-control
system.
[0255] In one example, the alerter system is configured to examine
the sensor data and expected operator behavior representative of
operator awareness in a vehicle context.
[0256] In one example, the remote-control system is configured to
receive make up information of at least one of the vehicle systems
from a dispatch facility and to be assigned to remotely control the
at least one of the vehicle systems based on the make up
information. In one embodiment, a method includes communicatively
coupling a remote-control system with plural separate vehicle
systems, generating control inputs from the remote-control system
to remotely control operation of the vehicle systems, and one or
more of changing how many of the vehicle systems are concurrently
controlled by the remote-control system or changing how many remote
operators of the remote-control system concurrently control the
same vehicle system of the vehicle systems.
[0257] In one example, the method also includes remotely
controlling the operation of the vehicle systems by communicating
the control inputs to the vehicle systems without any operator
disposed onboard the vehicle systems during movement of the vehicle
systems.
[0258] In one example, the control inputs designate operations of
the vehicle systems. The method also can include communicating the
control inputs to onboard operators of the vehicle systems to
implement the designated operations. The designated operations can
include one or more of designated throttle positions, designated
brake settings, or designated speeds.
[0259] In one example, the method also includes changing a number
of the remote operators that concurrently control the same vehicle
system of the vehicle systems based on an operating state of the
vehicle system being concurrently controlled.
[0260] In one example, the operating state includes the vehicle
system entering into or approaching a densely populated area.
[0261] In one example, the operating state includes the vehicle
system transporting hazardous cargo.
[0262] In one example, the method also includes communicating the
control inputs from the remote-control system to the vehicle
systems via one or more satellites.
[0263] In one example, the control inputs include designated
operational set points that vehicle control systems disposed
onboard the vehicle systems are to one or more of maintain or use
as upper limits on operations of the vehicle systems.
[0264] In one example, the method also includes monitoring one or
more of physiological conditions of onboard operators of the
vehicle systems or movements of the onboard operators, and
determining whether one or more of the onboard operators are
controlling the operation of the vehicle system based on the sensor
data.
[0265] In one example, the sensor data includes one or more of
images or video of the onboard operators.
[0266] In one example, the sensor data includes one or more of
pulse rates, respiration rates, blood pressures, or movements of
the onboard operators.
[0267] In one embodiment, a distributed control system includes a
vehicle control system configured to be disposed onboard a vehicle
system formed from one or more vehicles. The vehicle control system
is configured to control movement of the vehicle system. The
distributed control system also includes a remote-control system
configured to be communicatively coupled with the vehicle control
system. The remote-control system is configured to communicate
control inputs from one or more off-board operators of the
remote-control system to the vehicle system in order to remotely
control the movement of the vehicle system. The remote-control
system is configured to change how many of the off-board operators
concurrently generate the control inputs for communication from the
remote-control system to the vehicle control system for
remote-control of the vehicle system.
[0268] In one embodiment, a vehicle control system includes a
controller configured to be disposed onboard a vehicle system and
to be communicatively coupled with one or more of a propulsion
system or a braking system of the vehicle system. The controller is
configured to receive operational set points designated by an
operator located onboard the vehicle system and to determine
operational settings of the one or more of the propulsion system or
the braking system that drives the vehicle system to move according
to the operational set points designated by the operator.
[0269] In one example, the operational set points include
designated speeds.
[0270] In one example, the operational settings include throttle
positions.
[0271] One or more embodiments of the inventive subject matter
described herein relate to systems and methods that enable control
of movement of a vehicle system to transfer between one or more of
an onboard vehicle control system and a remote-control system for
one of the onboard vehicle control system or the remote-control
system to control the movement of the vehicle system. The systems
and methods communicatively link the remote-control system and the
onboard vehicle control system and transfer control of the movement
of the vehicle system based on one or more of a location, a
condition of the vehicle system, or an operator request and/or
condition. The location may be a geographic area or designated
segment of a route which is either known a priori or calculated
according to some track and/or region characteristics. For example,
these areas may be based on population density, track work
locations, grade crossing locations, vehicle work locations (e.g.,
pick-up or set-out of vehicles), a designated practice area for
manual control of the vehicle system, or the like. The condition
may be a fault state of the vehicle system, a communication loss
between the vehicle system and the remote-control system, an
increase in a rate of fuel consumption, or the like. The systems
and methods lock out onboard operator control of the vehicle
system, receive an instruction from the remote-control system to
test an operation of the vehicle system, and communicate visual
data representative of an area outside of the vehicle system when
control of the movement of the vehicle system transfers to the
remote-control system. The systems and methods automatically stop
the vehicle system if needed, activate the onboard vehicle control
system and disconnect communication with the remote-control system
when control of the movement of the vehicle system transfers to the
onboard vehicle control system.
[0272] This subject matter may be used in connection with rail
vehicles and rail vehicle systems, or alternatively may be used
with other types of vehicles. For example, the subject matter
described herein may be used in connection with automobiles,
trucks, mining vehicles, other off-highway vehicles (e.g., vehicles
that are not designed or are not legally permitted for travel on
public roadways), aerial vehicles (e.g., fixed wing aircraft,
drones or other unmanned aircraft, etc.), or marine vessels.
[0273] The vehicle consist or vehicle system can include two or
more vehicles mechanically coupled with each other to travel along
a route together. Optionally, the vehicle system can include two or
more vehicles that are not mechanically coupled with each other,
but that travel along a route together. For example, two or more
automobiles may wirelessly communicate with each other as the
vehicles travel along the route together as a vehicle system to
coordinate movements with each other. Optionally, a vehicle system
or consist may be formed from a single vehicle.
[0274] FIG. 20 illustrates one embodiment of a vehicle control
system 2000 used to control movement of a vehicle system 2004. The
vehicle system 2004 can represent one or more of the other vehicle
systems shown and/or described herein. The illustrated vehicle
system 2004 includes a propulsion-generating vehicle 2004 and
non-propulsion-generating vehicles 2006 that travel together along
a route 2008. Although the vehicles 2004, 2006 are shown as being
mechanically coupled with each other, optionally the vehicles may
not be mechanically coupled with each other.
[0275] The propulsion-generating vehicle 2004 is shown as a
locomotive, the non-propulsion-generating vehicles 2006 are shown
as rail cars, and the vehicle system 2004 is shown as a train in
the illustrated embodiment. Alternatively, the vehicles 2004, 2006
may represent other vehicles such as automobiles, marine vessels,
or the like, and the vehicle system 2004 can represent a grouping
or coupling of these vehicles. The number and arrangement of the
vehicles 2004, 2006 in the vehicle system 2004 are provided as one
example and are not intended as limitations on all embodiments of
the subject matter described herein.
[0276] The vehicle system includes an onboard vehicle control
system (OVCS) 2014. The OVCS can include hardware circuits or
circuitry that include and/or are connected with one or more
processors (e.g., one or more microprocessors, field programmable
gate arrays, and/or integrated circuits). The OVCS can control or
limit movement of the propulsion-generating vehicle 2004 and/or the
vehicle system 2004 that includes the vehicles 2004, 2006 based on
one or more limitations. For example, the OVCS can prevent the
vehicles and/or the vehicle system from entering a restricted area,
can prevent the vehicle and/or vehicle system from exiting a
designated area, can prevent the vehicle and/or vehicle system from
traveling at a speed that exceeds an upper speed limit, can prevent
the vehicle and/or vehicle system from traveling at a speed that is
less than a lower speed limit, can prevent the vehicle and/or
vehicle system from traveling according to a designated trip plan
generated by an energy management system, or the like. The OVCS
will be discussed in more detail with FIG. 19.
[0277] The propulsion-generating vehicle 2004 includes a control
mediation system 2016 disposed onboard the vehicle 2004. The
control mediation system represents hardware circuitry that
includes and/or is connected with one or more processors (e.g.,
microprocessors, controllers, field programmable gate arrays,
integrated circuits, or the like). The control mediation system is
operably connected with the OVCS of the vehicle 2004 by a
communication link 2024. The communication link 2024 may represent
a wired or wireless connection. Optionally, the control mediation
system may be disposed off-board the vehicle system 2004 and may
wirelessly communicate with the OVCS. Additionally or
alternatively, the vehicle system 2004 may include one or more
additional propulsion-generating vehicles wherein the one or more
additional propulsion-generating vehicles may include a control
mediation system. For example, the vehicle system may include two
or more propulsion-generating vehicles 2004 where one or more, or
each, of the vehicles includes a control mediation system.
Optionally, the vehicle system 2004 may include two or more
propulsion-generating vehicles 2004 wherein only one vehicle 2004
includes a control mediation system.
[0278] The control mediation system is operably connected with a
remote-control system that is disposed off-board the vehicle system
2004. The remote-control system can represent one or more of the
remote-control systems described herein, and can remotely control
movement of the vehicle system 2004 by communicating movement
operational settings to the control mediation system 2116 onboard
the vehicle 2004. Multiple operators at the remote-control system
can remotely control the movement of the vehicle system 2004. For
example, multiple operators may remotely control multiple,
different moving heavy vehicles (e.g., trains, vessels,
automobiles, or the like).
[0279] The remote-control system is separated from the vehicle
system 2004 by a distance 2026. The distance may be 50 meters, 500
meters, 500 kilometers, 5000 kilometers, or the like. The distance
between the vehicle system 2004 and the remote-control system can
be beyond a line of site of an operator of the remote-control
system to the vehicle system 2004, can extend between different
time zones, can extend between different geographical locations
(e.g., different town, county, state, country) or the like. For
example, an operator of the remote-control system may control the
movement of the vehicle system 2004 when the operator of the
remote-control system is located in New York and the vehicle system
2004 is located in Utah. Alternatively, the distance may be within
a line a site of an operator of the remote-control system to the
vehicle system 2004. For example, the distance may be less than 50
meters.
[0280] The remote-control system is communicatively linked with the
OVCS of the vehicle 2004 by communication links established between
the remote-control system and the vehicle system 2004. For example,
the remote-control system communicates control signals to a first
communication device 2010 (e.g., a first satellite 2010a) by the
communication link 2018. The first satellite 2010a communicates the
control signals to a second communication device 2010 (e.g., a
second satellite 2010b) by the communication link 2020. The second
satellite 2010b communicates the control signals to the control
mediation system 2016 onboard the vehicle system 2004 by the
communication link 2022. Optionally, less than two or more than two
satellites may be used to communicate signals between the
remote-control system and the vehicle system 2004. Additionally or
alternatively, the vehicle system 2004 may communicate with the
remote-control system with terrestrial communications repeaters
(e.g., radio towers). Optionally, the vehicle system 2004 and
remote-control system may communicate by communication links
established between one or more satellites and/or one or more radio
towers, or the like. Additionally, the remote-control system is
communicatively linked with the OVCS by the communication link 2024
established between the control mediation system and the OVCS. For
example, the control mediation system communicates the control
signals between the remote-control system (e.g., by communication
links 2018, 2020, 2022) and the OVCS (e.g., by the communication
link 2024).
[0281] The remote-control system communicates control signals to
the vehicle system 2004 by the communication links in order to
remotely control the movement of the vehicle system 2004 as the
vehicle system 2004 travels along the route 2008. The control
signals dictate the movement operational settings of the vehicle
system 2004 that include one or more of a throttle notch setting, a
brake setting, speed setting or the like. The remote-control system
will be described in further detail below with FIG. 22.
[0282] The one or more processers of the control mediation system
communicatively link the remote-control system disposed off-board
the vehicle system with the OVCS disposed onboard the vehicle
system 2004. The one or more processors of the control mediation
system mediate a process of transferring control of the movement of
the vehicle system 2004 from the remote-control system to the OVCS
or from the OVCS to the remote-control system. For example, the
control mediation system mediates (e.g., manages, arbitrates, or
the like) which system controls the vehicle system 2004 to ensure
the movement of the vehicle system 2004 is controlled by a single
system at a given time. For example, when control of the movement
of the vehicle system is managed by the remote-control system, the
movement of the vehicle system 2004 cannot be controlled
autonomously by the OVCS or manually by an operator onboard the
vehicle system 2004. Additionally, when control of the movement of
the vehicle system 2004 is managed by the OVCS (manually or
autonomously), the movement of the vehicle system 2004 cannot be
controlled by the remote-control system.
[0283] Control of the movement of the vehicle system 2004 may
transfer from the remote-control system to the OVCS or from the
OVCS to the remote-control system based on a location and/or
region, if vehicle system 2004 experiences a certain condition,
based on the request and/or condition of the operators of the
vehicle system 2004, or the like. The location is a designated
geographic area or a designated segment of the route 2008. The
location may be a length of the route (e.g., 10 kilometers, 50
kilometers, or the like), may be a geographic area (e.g., a town, a
county, a state, or the like), may be a predetermined or a
non-predetermined length and/or geographic area (e.g., determined
prior to or during transit of the vehicle system 2004) which is
either known a priori or calculated according to some track and/or
region characteristics, or the like. For example, these areas may
be based on population density, track work locations, grade
crossing locations, vehicle work locations (e.g., pick-up or
set-out of vehicles), a designated practice area for manual control
of the vehicle system 2004, or the like.
[0284] Additionally, control of the movement of the vehicle system
2004 may transfer from the remote-control system to the OVCS or
from the OVCS to the remote-control system based on a condition of
the vehicle system 2004. For example, the condition may be a fault
state of the vehicle system 2004, may be a communication loss
between the vehicle system 2004 and the remote-control system, may
be by request of the local or remote operator, may be a lack of
alertness or other physical condition of the local and/or remote
operator, or the like. Methods determining if control of the
vehicle system 2004 is to transfer from one system to another, and
transferring control of the vehicle system will be discussed below
in more detail pertaining to FIGS. 23 and 24.
[0285] FIG. 21 is a schematic illustration of the onboard vehicle
control system (OVCS) 2014 disposed onboard the vehicle 2004 in
accordance with one embodiment. The OVCS controls the movement of
the vehicle system 2004. The OVCS may be one or more of controlled
manually (e.g., by of an operator onboard the vehicle 2004) and/or
autonomously with an energy management system (EMS) 2102. The OVCS
can include or represent one or more hardware circuits or circuitry
that include, are connected with, or that both include and are
connected with one or more processors, controllers or other
hardware logic-based devices. For example, an operator onboard the
vehicle 2004 may manually control movement of the vehicle system
2004 by manually controlling the hardware, controllers, devices, or
the like of the OVCS. Additionally or alternatively, the EMS may
autonomously control movement of the vehicle system 2004 (e.g.,
without input by an operator onboard the vehicle system 2004) by
electrically communicating directions and/or commands to the
systems and devices associated with the OVCS 2114.
[0286] The EMS can include hardware circuits or circuitry that
include and/or are connected with one or more processors. The EMS
can create a trip plan for trips of the vehicles 2004, 2006 and/or
the vehicle system 2004 that includes the vehicles 2004, 2006. A
trip plan may designate operational settings of the
propulsion-generating vehicle and/or the vehicle system as a
function of one or more of time, location, or distance along a
route for a trip. Traveling according to the operational settings
designated by the trip plan may reduce fuel consumed and/or
emissions generated by the vehicles and/or the vehicle system 2004
relative to the vehicles and/or vehicle system traveling according
to other operational settings that are not designated by the trip
plan. The identities of the vehicles in the vehicle system 2004 may
be known to the EMS so that the EMS can autonomously control
operations of the vehicle system 2004. Additionally, the EMS can
determine what operational settings to designate for a trip plan to
achieve a goal of reducing fuel consumed and/or emissions generated
by the vehicle system during the trip.
[0287] The OVCS is connected with an input device 2104 and an
output device 2106. The OVCS can receive manual input from an
operator of the propulsion-generating vehicle 2004 through the
input device, such as a touchscreen, keyboard, electronic mouse,
microphone, or the like. For example, the OVCS can receive manually
input changes to the tractive effort, braking effort, speed, power
output, and the like, from the input device. The OVCS 2514 may
receive a single instance of an actuation of the input device to
initiate the establishment of a communication link between the OVCS
and the control mediation system.
[0288] The OVCS can present information to the operator of the
vehicle using the output device, which can represent a display
screen (e.g., touchscreen or other screen), speakers, printer, or
the like. For example, the OVCS can present the identities and
statuses of other vehicles in the vehicle system, identities of
missing vehicles (e.g., those vehicles from which the vehicle has
not received the status), contents of one or more command messages,
or the like. The output device provides a notification signal to
the operator of the vehicle that automatically informs (e.g.,
notifies) the operator of the vehicle that control of the movement
of the vehicle system has changed. For example, the output device
may change colors, change a display format, ring a bell,
communicate a vocal command, communicate a sound, or the like that
the control of the movement of the vehicle system is and/or has
transferred one or more of to the remote-control system or to the
OVCS. Optionally, the output device can present instructions to the
operator onboard the vehicle system from the OVCS that instruct the
operator how to manually control the movement of the vehicle
system. For example, the output device may instruct a throttle
notch setting, speed setting, brake setting, or the like, to the
operator of the vehicle system for the operator onboard the vehicle
system to manually control the movement of the vehicle system.
[0289] The OVCS is connected with a propulsion subsystem 2108 of
the propulsion-generating vehicle. The propulsion subsystem can
represent one or more of the propulsion systems described and/or
shown herein. The propulsion subsystem provides tractive effort
and/or braking effort of the propulsion-generating vehicle. The
propulsion subsystem may include or represent one or more engines,
motors, alternators, generators, brakes, batteries, turbines, and
the like, that operate to propel the propulsion-generating vehicle
and/or the vehicle system under the manual or autonomous control
that is implemented by the OVCS. For example, the OVCS can direct
operations of the propulsion subsystem by the OVCS generating
control signals autonomously or based on manual input by an
operator.
[0290] The OVCS is connected with a memory 2112 and a communication
device 2110. The memory can represent an onboard device that
electrically and/or magnetically stores data. For example, the
memory may represent a computer hard drive, random access memory,
read-only memory, dynamic random access memory, an optical drive,
or the like. The communication device includes or represents
hardware and/or software that is used to communicate with other
vehicles in the vehicle system. For example, the communication
device may include a transceiver and associated circuitry (e.g.,
antenna 2030 of FIG. 20) for wirelessly communicating (e.g.,
communicating and/or receiving) linking messages, command messages,
reply messages, repeat messages, or the like. Optionally, the
communication device includes circuitry for communicating messages
over a wired connection, such as an electric multiple unit (eMU)
line of the vehicle system (not shown), catenary or third rail of
electrically powered vehicles, or another conductive pathway
between or among the vehicles of the vehicle system 2004 and/or
between or among vehicles of a different vehicle system.
[0291] The OVCS may control the communication device by activating
the communication device. The OVCS can examine the messages that
are received by the communication device from one or more of the
control mediation system or other vehicles in the vehicle
system.
[0292] The OVCS is connected with an object detection sensor 2120.
The object detection sensor can include hardware circuits or
circuitry and/or software that include and/or are connected with
one or more processors. The detection sensor can obtain sensor data
that is indicative of an area outside of the vehicle system. For
example, the detection sensor may obtain sensor data in an area in
front of the vehicle system in a direction of travel of the vehicle
system, in an area behind the vehicle system in a direction of
travel of the vehicle system, or the like. The detection sensor may
include a camera that obtains still and/or motion visual data of an
area of the route in the direction of travel of the vehicle system
and/or in a direction opposite the direction of travel of the
vehicle system. For example, the detection sensor may be one or
more cameras that capture still images in the front (e.g., in the
direction of travel) and the rear (e.g., opposite the direction of
travel) of the vehicle system. Optionally, the detection sensor may
be a radar system that sends and receives pulses reflected off of
an object in order to detect a presence of an object in an area
outside of the vehicle system. Optionally, the detection sensor may
be an alternative sensing system that obtains data of an area
outside of the vehicle system. The detection sensor may obtain data
(e.g., visual, statistical, radar, or the like) a distance of 2
meters, 25 meters, 100 meters, 500 meters, 1000 meters, or the like
outside of and in a direction away from the vehicle system.
[0293] The object detection sensor may include one or more sensing
devices positioned around the vehicle on one or more of the
interior and/or exterior of the vehicle (not shown). For example, a
sensing device may be positioned on a front and/or rear end of the
vehicle to obtain data for the vehicle and/or the vehicle system
that travels in a first direction and an opposite second direction
(e.g., back and forth). Optionally, one or more sensing devices may
be used, and the placement of the one or more sensing devices may
vary.
[0294] FIG. 22 is a schematic illustration of the remote-control
system 2012 of FIG. 20. The remote-control system remotely controls
movement of the vehicle system 2004. For example, the
remote-control system remotely controls movement of the vehicle
system by communicating with the control mediation system by the
communication links. The remote-control system represents hardware
circuitry that includes and/or is connected with one or more
processors (e.g., microprocessors, controllers, field programmable
gate arrays, integrated circuits, or the like).
[0295] The remote-control system generates control signals that are
communicated by a communication unit 2202. The control signals
remotely control movement of the vehicle system 2004. The
communication unit 2202 can one or more of send or receive
communication signals with the vehicle system by the communication
links between the control mediation system and the remote-control
system. The remote-control system receives one or more of image
data and/or sensor data detected by the object detection sensor
onboard the propulsion-generating vehicle. For example, the
remote-control system may receive visual data obtained by the
detection sensor and communicated by the control mediation system
that is representative of an area outside of the vehicle system.
Optionally, the remote-control system may receive status
notifications such as vehicle system equipment statuses, current
vehicle and/or vehicle system operational settings, vehicle system
location, or the like, of the vehicles and/or of the vehicle
system.
[0296] The remote-control system can include one or more input
devices 2206 and/or output devices 2208 such as a keyboard, an
electronic mouse, stylus, microphone, touch pad, or the like.
Additionally or alternatively, the input and/or output devices may
be used to communicate with one or more of an operator of the
vehicle system or the OVCS. The remote-control system can include
one or more displays 2204 such as a touchscreen, display screen,
electronic display, or the like. The displays may visually,
graphically, statistically, or the like, display information to the
operator of the remote-control system. The remote-control system is
operably connected with components of the vehicle system.
Additionally or alternatively, the remote-control system may be
operably connected with components or alternative systems onboard
and/or off-board the vehicle system.
[0297] The remote-control system can include a power unit 2210. The
power unit powers the remote-control unit. For example, the power
unit may be a battery and/or circuity that supplies electrical
current to power other components of the remote-control system.
Additionally or alternatively, the power unit may provide
electrical power to one or more other systems.
[0298] Returning to FIG. 20, the remote-control system is
configured to remotely control movement of the vehicle system by
sending control signals to the OVCS onboard the vehicle via the
control mediation system. Additionally, the OVCS is configured to
control movement of the vehicle system one or more of autonomously
or manually by an operator onboard the vehicle system. The one or
more processors of the control mediation system control which of
the remote-control system or the OVCS controls the movement of the
vehicle system at a given time. Additionally, the control mediation
system mediates the transfer of control of the movement of the
vehicle system from the remote-control system to the OVCS or from
the OVCS to the remote-control system.
[0299] FIG. 23 illustrates a flowchart of a method 2300 for
transferring control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
remote-control system to the OVCS. The steps of the method 2300 may
be completed one or more of prior to or during the transfer of
control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
remote-control system to the OVCS.
[0300] At 2302, the remote-control system is communicatively linked
to the OVCS via the control mediation system. For example, the
remote-control system is communicatively linked to the control
mediation system by the communication links and the OVCS is
communicatively linked to the control mediation system by the
communication link.
[0301] At 2304, control of the movement of the vehicle system is
controlled by the remote-control system. For example, when control
of the movement of the vehicle system is controlled by the
remote-control system, an operator or autonomous controller (e.g.,
the EMS) onboard the vehicle system is unable to control the
movement of the vehicle system. The remote-control system remotely
controls the movement of the vehicle system by communicating
control signals to the OVCS. The control signals dictate the
movement operational settings of the vehicle system that include
one or more of a throttle notch setting, a brake setting, speed
setting or the like. For example, one or more operators of the
remote-control system may send a control signal to the OVCS via the
control mediation system directing the OVCS to increase the speed
of the vehicle system to 75 kilometers per hour. Responsive to
receiving the control signal, the OVCS directs the propulsion
subsystem to increase the throttle notch setting to adhere to the
75 kph speed direction.
[0302] At 2306, a decision is made to determine if control of the
movement of the vehicle system needs to transfer from the
remote-control system to the OVCS. The decision is based on one or
more of a location, a condition of the vehicle system, or an
operator (e.g., onboard or off-board) request and/or condition. For
example, the control of the movement of the vehicle system may need
to transfer to the OVCS if the vehicle system is traveling in a
congested region (e.g., a town, a city). Optionally, the location
of the vehicle system may be any alternative location that may
benefit by the OVCS controlling the movement of the vehicle
system.
[0303] Alternatively, the control of the movement of the vehicle
system may transfer to the OVCS if the vehicle system has
experienced a fault state. For example, one or more of the onboard
vehicle control systems of the propulsion-generating vehicles may
have identified an airbrake failure of the propulsion subsystem.
Optionally, the vehicle system may have experienced a communication
loss with the remote-control system. For example, one or more of
the communication links may have been compromised. Optionally, the
condition of the vehicle system may be any alternative condition
that would benefit by the OVCS controlling the movement of the
vehicle system.
[0304] Alternatively, the control of the movement of the vehicle
system may transfer to the OVCS if the operator of the
remote-control system or the operator of the OVCS has initiated a
request to transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system
to the OVCS. For example, the off-board operator of the
remote-control system may reach a work end time and need to
transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system to the OVCS
for manual and/or autonomous control. Optionally, the off-board
operator of the remote-control system may have a decrease in
alertness prohibiting the off-board operator from safely
controlling the movement of the vehicle system. Optionally, the
request and/or condition of the operator onboard the vehicle system
and/or the operator of the remote-control system may be any
alternative request or condition that would benefit by the OVCS
controlling the movement of the vehicle system.
[0305] If control of the movement of the vehicle system does not
need to transfer to the OVCS, then flow of the method returns to
2304 and the remote-control system continues to remotely control
the movement of the vehicle system. If control of the movement of
the vehicle system does need to transfer to the OVCS, then flow of
the method proceeds to 2308.
[0306] At 2308, transfer of control of the movement of the vehicle
system from the remote-control system to the OVCS is initiated. The
transfer of control may be initiated by one or more of an operator
of the remote-control system, an operator onboard the vehicle
system, or autonomously by the OVCS. At 2309, a determination is
made if the OVCS energy management system (EMS) is ready to
autonomously control the movement of the vehicle system. For
example, the EMS can automatically control the movement of the
vehicle system without operator intervention. The EMS may not be
ready to autonomously control the movement of the vehicle system if
the vehicle system is in a particular location/region, the vehicle
system has experienced a certain condition, or based on the request
and/or condition of the local or remote operators. For example, the
EMS may not be ready to autonomously control the movement of the
vehicle system if the vehicle system is traveling through a
congested area. Optionally, if the EMS is not ready to control the
movement of the vehicle system, the EMS may automatically present
instructions to the operator onboard the vehicle system instructing
the operator how to control the movement of the vehicle system. If
the EMS is ready to control the movement of the vehicle system,
then flow of the method proceeds toward. If the EMS is not ready to
autonomously control the vehicle system, then flow of the method
proceeds toward 2310.
[0307] At 2310, a determination is made if an operator is onboard
the vehicle system. If an operator is not onboard the vehicle
system, then flow of the method proceeds to 2311 wherein the
vehicle system stops in order to allow an operator to board the
vehicle system and flow of the method proceeds to 2312. If an
operator is onboard the vehicle system, flow of the method proceeds
toward 2312.
[0308] At 2312, the OVCS is activated to allow for one or more of
manual or autonomous control of the movement of the vehicle system.
For example, the OVCS may be in a setting for control by only the
remote-control system prior to transferring control of the movement
of the vehicle system. The OVCS may be activated to a second,
different setting to allow for control of the vehicle system by the
OVCS (e.g., autonomous and/or manual control). The OVCS may be
activated to allow the operator onboard the vehicle system to
manually control the movement of the vehicle system. Optionally,
the OVCS may be activated to allow the EMS to automatically control
the movement of the vehicle system without intervention by the
operator.
[0309] At 2314, the one or more processors of the control mediation
system completes the transfer of control of the movement of the
vehicle system from the remote-control system. For example, the
control mediation system may lock out or prevent control signals
communicated by the remote-control vehicle from being received by
the OVCS.
[0310] At 2316, one or more of the operator onboard the vehicle
system, the one or more operators of the remote-control system, or
an operator of an alternative system are notified that the transfer
of control of the movement of the vehicle system is complete. For
example, the operator onboard the vehicle system 2004 may be
notified by the output device changing to a different color,
changing to a different display format, sounding a bell,
communicating a vocal command, communicating a sound, by the OVCS
changing and/or dimming the interior lights of the vehicle, or the
like. Optionally, the operator onboard the vehicle system may be
notified by any alternative method. The one or more operators of
the remote-control system may be notified that the transfer of
control of the movement of the vehicle system is complete by one or
more of the display or the output device changing to a different
color, changing to a different display format, sounding a bell,
communicating a vocal command, communicating a sound, or the like.
Optionally, the one or more operators of the remote-control system
may be notified by any alternative method.
[0311] At 2318, the OVCS disconnects communication with the
remote-control system. For example, the control mediation system
breaks the communication links between the remote-control system
and the vehicle system. Optionally, the communication links may
remain intact and the one or more processors of the control
mediation system may prohibit control signals communicated by the
remote-control system from being delivered to the OVCS.
[0312] FIG. 24 illustrates a flowchart of a method 2400 for
transferring control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
OVCS to the remote-control system. The operations of the method
2400 may be completed one or more of prior to or during the
transfer of control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
OVCS to the remote-control system.
[0313] At 2402, the OVCS is communicatively linked to the
remote-control system via the control mediation system. For
example, the OVCS is communicatively linked to the control
mediation system by the communication link, and the remote-control
system is communicatively linked to the control mediation system by
the communication links.
[0314] At 2404, control of the movement of the vehicle system is
controlled by the OVCS. For example, when control of the movement
of the vehicle system is controlled by the OVCS, one or more
operators of the remote-control system are unable to control the
movement of the vehicle system. The OVCS controls the movement of
the vehicle system by directing the propulsion subsystem to change
the movement of the vehicle system by one or more of changing a
throttle notch setting, a brake setting, speed setting, or the
like. For example, the OVCS may autonomously or manually by an
operator onboard the vehicle direct propulsion subsystem to
decrease the speed of the vehicle system to 45 kilometers per hour.
In response, the propulsion subsystem may decrease the throttle
notch setting and/or apply the brakes to adhere to the 45 kph speed
direction.
[0315] At 2406, a decision is made to determine if control of the
movement of the vehicle system needs to transfer from the OVCS to
the remote-control system. The decision is based on one or more of
a location, a condition of the vehicle system, or an operator
(e.g., onboard or off-board) request and/or condition. For example,
the control of the movement of the vehicle system may need to
transfer to the remote-control system if the vehicle system is
traveling in a non-congested area (e.g., an open plane with minimal
or no natural or manmade obstructions). Optionally, the location of
the vehicle system may be any alternative location that would
benefit by the remote-control system remotely controlling the
movement of the vehicle system.
[0316] Alternatively, the control of the movement of the vehicle
system may transfer to the remote-control system if the vehicle
system has not experienced a fault state for a designated threshold
amount of time and/or length of travel along the route. For
example, the OVCS may communicate to one or more of the
remote-control system or an alternative system that the status of
each vehicle and/or the vehicle system is functioning appropriately
for a given amount of time and/or distance of travel. Optionally,
the condition of the vehicle system may be any alternative
condition that would benefit by the remote-control system remotely
controlling of the movement of the vehicle system.
[0317] Alternatively, the control of the movement of the vehicle
system may transfer to the remote-control system if the operator of
the OVCS or the operator of the remote-control system has initiated
a request to transfer control of the movement. For example, the
onboard operator of the OVCS may reach a designated break time and
need to transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system to
the remote-control system to take a designated work break.
Optionally, the onboard operator of the OVCS may have a decrease in
alertness prohibiting the onboard operator of the OVCS from safely
controlling the movement of the vehicle system. Optionally, the
request and/or condition of the operator onboard the vehicle system
and/or the operator of the remote-control system may be any
alternative request or condition that would benefit by the
remote-control system controlling the movement of the vehicle
system.
[0318] If control of the movement of the vehicle system does not
need to transfer to the remote-control system, then flow of the
method returns to 2404 and the OVCS continues to control the
movement of the vehicle system (autonomously or manually). If
control of the movement of the vehicle system does need to transfer
to the remote-control system, then flow of the method proceeds to
2407.
[0319] At 2407, transfer of control of the movement of the vehicle
system from the OVCS to the remote-control system is initiated. The
transfer of control may be initiated by one or more of an operator
of the remote-control system, an operator onboard the vehicle
system, or autonomously by the OVCS.
[0320] At 2408, the control mediation system locks out an operator
and autonomous control of the EMS onboard the vehicle system. For
example, the control mediation system may prevent control signals
one or more of input by the operator onboard the vehicle control
system or autonomously by the OVCS from controlling the movement of
the vehicle system.
[0321] At 2410, the OVCS receives an instruction from the
remote-control system via the control mediation system to test an
operation of the vehicle system. For example, the instruction may
be to perform an airbrake test, switch headlights on and/or off, or
the like.
[0322] At 2412, the OVCS communicates visual data representative of
an area outside of the vehicle system to the remote-control system.
For example, the object detection sensor may obtain still or motion
image data of the area outside of the vehicle system (e.g., in
front of, behind, to the side, above, or the like). The OVCS may
communicate the obtained visual data to the remote-control system
in which the visual data is displayed by the display of the
remote-control system. The visual data informs the operator of the
remote-control system of one or more of the condition, location,
region, or the like of the vehicle system. For example, the visual
data may inform the operator of the remote-control system that the
route is clear of any obstructions. Additionally, the visual data
informs the operator of the remote-control system if the
instruction of 2410 was received by the OVCS and if the instruction
was successfully completed by the OVCS. For example, the visual
data may inform the operator of the remote-control system that the
instruction the turn the headlights on and/or off was received
and/or accurately completed.
[0323] At 2414, the one or more processors of the control mediation
system completes the transfer of control of the movement of the
vehicle system from the OVCS to the remote-control system. For
example, the control mediation system may lock out or prevent
control signals by the OVCS (manually or autonomously) from
controlling the movement of the vehicle system.
[0324] At 2416, one or more of the operator onboard or near the
vehicle system, the one or more operators of the remote-control
system, or an operator of an alternative system are notified that
the transfer of control of the movement of the vehicle system is
complete. For example, the operator onboard the vehicle system may
be notified by the output device changing to a different color,
changing to a different display format, sounding a bell,
communicating a vocal command, communicating a sound, by the OVCS
changing and/or dimming the interior lights of the vehicle, or the
like. Optionally, the operator onboard the vehicle system may be
notified by any alternative method. The one or more operators of
the remote-control system may be notified that the transfer of
control of the movement of the vehicle system is complete by one or
more of the display or the output device changing to a different
color, changing to a different display format, sounding a bell,
communicating a vocal command, communicating a sound, or the like.
Optionally, the one or more operators of the remote-control system
may be notified by any alternative method.
[0325] FIG. 25 illustrates one embodiment of a system 2500 that
includes a vehicle system 2502. The illustrated vehicle system 2502
includes a propulsion-generating vehicle 2504 and non-propulsion
generating vehicles. Although the vehicles are shown as being
mechanically coupled with each other, optionally the vehicles may
not be mechanically coupled with each other.
[0326] The propulsion-generating vehicle 2504 includes an onboard
vehicle control system (OVCS) 2514 (corresponding to the OVCS 2014)
disposed onboard the vehicle 2504. The OVCS 2514 can include
hardware circuits or circuitry that include and/or are connected
with one or more processors. The OVCS 2514 can control or limit
movement of the propulsion-generating vehicle 2504 and/or the
vehicle system 2502 that includes the vehicles based on one or more
limitations.
[0327] The system 2500 includes a remote-control system 2512
(corresponding to the remote-control system 2012 of FIG. 20)
disposed off-board the vehicle system 2502. The remote-control
system 2512 remotely controls movement of the vehicle system 2502
by communicating movement operational settings to the vehicle
system 2502. Multiple operators at the remote-control system 2512
can remotely control the movement of the vehicle system 2502. For
example, multiple operators may remotely control multiple,
different moving heavy vehicles (e.g., trains, vessels,
automobiles, or the like).
[0328] The remote-control system 2512 includes a control mediation
system 2516 (corresponding to the control mediation system 2016 of
FIG. 20). The control mediation system 2516 represents hardware
circuitry that includes and/or is connected with one or more
processors (e.g., microprocessors, controllers, field programmable
gate arrays, integrated circuits, or the like). The remote-control
system 2512 is operably connected with the control mediation system
2516 by a communication link 2530. The communication link 2530 may
represent a wired or wireless connection. Additionally, the control
mediation system 2516 is wirelessly connected with the OVCS 2514
onboard the vehicle system 2502.
[0329] The remote-control system 2512 is separated from the vehicle
system 2502 by a distance 2526. The distance 2526 may be 50 meters,
500 meters, 500 kilometers, 5000 kilometers, or the like. The
distance 2526 between the vehicle system 2502 and the
remote-control system 2512 can be beyond a line of site of an
operator of the remote-control system 2512 to the vehicle system
2502, can extend between different time zones, can extend between
different geographical locations (e.g., different town, county,
state, country) or the like. For example, an operator of the
remote-control system 2512 may control the movement of the vehicle
system 2502 when the operator of the remote-control system 2512 is
located in New York and the vehicle system 2502 located in Utah.
Alternatively, the distance 2526 may be within a line a site of an
operator of the remote-control system 2512 to the vehicle system
2502. For example, the distance 2526 may be less than 50
meters.
[0330] The remote-control system 2512 is communicatively linked
with the OVCS 2514 of the vehicle 2504 by communication links 2518,
2520, 2522, 2530 established between the remote-control system 2512
and the vehicle system 2502. For example, the remote-control system
2512 communicates control signals to the control mediation system
2516 by the communication link 2530. The control mediation system
2516 communicates the control signals to a first satellite 2510a by
the communication link 2518. The first satellite 2510a communicates
the control signals to a second satellite 2510b by the
communication link 2520. The second satellite 2510b communicates
the control signals to the OVCS 2514 by the communication link
2522. Optionally, less than two or more than two satellites may be
used to communicate signals between the remote-control system 2512
and the vehicle system 2502. Additionally or alternatively, the
vehicle system 2502 may communicate with the remote-control system
2512 with terrestrial communications repeaters (e.g., radio
towers). Optionally, the vehicle system 2502 and remote-control
system 2512 may communicate by communication links established
between one or more satellites and/or one or more radio towers, or
the like. Additionally, the remote-control system 2512 is
communicatively linked with the OVCS 2514 by the communication link
2530 established between the remote-control system 2512 and the
vehicle system 2502. For example, the control mediation system 2516
communicates control signals between the remote-control system
(e.g., by communication link 2530) and the OVCS 2514 (e.g., by the
communication links 2518, 2520, 2522).
[0331] The remote-control system 2512 communicates control signals
to the vehicle system 2502 by the communication links 2518, 2520,
2522, 2530 in order to remotely control the movement of the vehicle
system 2502 as the vehicle system 2502 travels along the route
2508. The control signals dictate the movement operational settings
of the vehicle system 2502 that include one or more of a throttle
notch setting, a brake setting, speed setting or the like.
[0332] The one or more processers of the control mediation system
2516 communicatively link the remote-control system 2512 disposed
off-board the vehicle system with the OVCS 2514 disposed onboard
the vehicle system 2502. The one or more processors of the control
mediation system 2516 mediate a process of transferring control of
the movement of the vehicle system 2502 from the remote-control
system 2512 to the OVCS 2514 or from the OVCS 2514 to the
remote-control system 2512. For example, the control mediation
system 2516 mediates (e.g., manages, arbitrates, or the like) which
system controls the vehicle system 2502 to ensure the control of
the movement of the vehicle system is controlled by a single system
at a given time. For example, when control of the movement of the
vehicle system is managed by the remote-control system 2512, the
movement of the vehicle system 2502 cannot be controlled
autonomously by the OVCS 2114 or manually by an operator onboard
the vehicle system 2502. Additionally, when control of the movement
of the vehicle system 2502 is managed by the OVCS 2514 (manually or
autonomously), the vehicle system 2502 cannot be controlled by the
remote-control system 2512.
[0333] Control of the movement of the vehicle system 2502 may
transfer from the remote-control system 2512 to the OVCS 2514 or
from the OVCS 2514 to the remote-control system 2512 based on a
location, a condition of the vehicle system 2502, or an operator
request and/or condition. The location is a designated geographic
area or a designated segment of the route 2508 which is either
known a priori or calculated according to some track and/or region
characteristics. For example, these areas may be based on
population density, track work locations, grade crossing locations,
vehicle work locations (e.g., pick-up or set-out of vehicles), a
designated practice area for manual control of the vehicle system
2502, or the like. The condition may be a fault state of the
vehicle system 2502, may be a communication loss between the
vehicle system 2502 and the remote-control system 2512, may be an
increase or decrease of a rate of fuel consumption above a
designated non-zero threshold, or the like. The operator request
and/or condition may be based on a level of alertness of the
operator onboard the vehicle system 2502 or the operator of the
remote-control system 2512, a designated work break and/or stoppage
for one or more operators, or the like.
[0334] The remote-control system 2512 is configured to remotely
control movement of the vehicle system 2502 by sending control
signals to the OVCS 2514 onboard the vehicle 2504 via the control
mediation system 2516. Additionally, the OVCS 2514 is configured to
control movement of the vehicle system 2502 one or more of
autonomously or manually by an operator onboard the vehicle system
2502. The one or more processors of the control mediation system
2516 control which of the remote-control system 2512 or the OVCS
2514 controls the movement of the vehicle system at a given time.
Additionally, the control mediation system 2516 mediates the
transfer of control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
remote-control system 2512 to the OVCS 2514 or from the OVCS 2514
to the remote-control system 2512.
[0335] In one embodiment of the subject matter described herein, a
system is provided that includes one or more processors configured
to communicatively link a remote-control system disposed off-board
a vehicle system with an onboard vehicle control system on the
vehicle system. The remote-control system and the onboard vehicle
control system are configured to control movement of the vehicle
system, wherein the one or more processors are configured to
transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
remote-control system to the onboard vehicle control system based
on one or more of a location, a condition of the vehicle system, or
by one or more of a request or condition of an operator or from the
onboard vehicle control system to the remote-control system based
on the one or more of the location, the condition of the vehicle
system, or by the one or more of the request or condition of the
operator.
[0336] Optionally, the one or more processors are configured to
generate and provide a notification signal to an output device
onboard the vehicle system that automatically informs the operator
onboard or near the vehicle system of transfer of control of the
movement of the vehicle system from the remote-control system to
the onboard vehicle control system or from the onboard vehicle
control system to the remote-control system.
[0337] Optionally, the one or more processors are configured to
transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
remote-control system to the onboard vehicle control system or
transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system to the
remote-control system from the onboard vehicle control system
responsive to the vehicle system entering the location being a
designated geographic area or a designated segment of a route.
Optionally, the location is a designated practice area for manual
control of the vehicle system by the operator. Optionally the
condition is a fault state of the vehicle system. Optionally, the
condition is a communication loss between the vehicle system and
the remote-control system. Optionally, the condition is a decreased
alertness of the operator.
[0338] Optionally, the onboard vehicle control system is configured
to one or more of automatically control the movement of the vehicle
system without operator intervention or automatically present
instructions to the operator that instruct the operator how to
control the movement of the vehicle system.
[0339] Optionally, the one or more processors are configured to
lock out operator control of the movement of the vehicle system,
receive instructions from the remote-control system to test an
operation of the vehicle system, and communicate visual data
representative of an area outside of the vehicle system to the
remote-control system prior to or during transfer of control of the
movement of the vehicle system from the onboard vehicle control
system to the remote-control system.
[0340] Optionally, the one or more processors are configured to
automatically stop the vehicle system, activate the onboard vehicle
control system, and disconnect communication with the
remote-control system prior to or during transfer of control of the
movement of the vehicle system from the remote-control system to
the onboard vehicle control system.
[0341] In one embodiment of the subject matter described herein, a
method is provided that includes communicatively linking a
remote-control system disposed off-board a vehicle system and an
onboard vehicle control system on the vehicle system with one or
more processors. The remote-control system and the onboard vehicle
control system are configured to control movement of the vehicle
system. The method includes transferring control of the movement of
the vehicle system from the remote-control system to the onboard
vehicle control system based on one or more of a location, a
condition of the vehicle system, or one or more of a request or
condition of an operator or from the onboard vehicle control system
to the remote-control system based on the one or more of the
location, the condition of the vehicle system, or the one or more
of the request or condition of the operator with the one or more
processors.
[0342] Optionally, the one or more processors transfer control of
the movement of the vehicle system from the remote-control system
to the onboard vehicle control system or transfer control of the
movement of the vehicle system to the remote-control system from
the onboard vehicle control system responsive to the vehicle system
entering the location being a designated geographic area or a
designated segment of a route. Optionally, the location is a
designated practice area for manual control of the vehicle system
by the operator. Optionally, the condition is a fault state of the
vehicle system. Optionally, the condition is a communication loss
between the vehicle system and the remote-control system.
Optionally, the condition is a decreased alertness of the
operator.
[0343] Optionally, the method includes the onboard vehicle control
system one or more of automatically controlling the movement of the
vehicle system without operator intervention or automatically
presenting instructions to the operator that instruct the operator
how to control the movement of the vehicle system.
[0344] Optionally, the method includes locking out operator control
of the movement of the vehicle system, receiving an instruction
from the remote-control system to test an operation of the vehicle
system, and communicating visual data representative of an area
outside of the vehicle system to the remote-control system prior to
or during transferring of control of the movement of the vehicle
system from the onboard vehicle control system to the
remote-control system.
[0345] Optionally, the method includes automatically stopping the
vehicle system, activating the onboard vehicle control system, and
disconnecting with the remote-control system prior to or during
transferring of control of the movement of the vehicle system from
the remote-control system to the onboard vehicle control
system.
[0346] In one embodiment of the subject matter described herein, a
system is provided that includes one or more processors configured
to communicatively link with a vehicle system for remotely
controlling movement of the vehicle system. The vehicle system also
includes an onboard vehicle control system for locally controlling
movement of the vehicle system, wherein the one or more processors
are configured to transfer control of the movement of the vehicle
system from the remote-control system to the onboard vehicle
control system based on one or more of a location, a condition of
the vehicle system, or one or more of a request or condition of an
operator or from the onboard vehicle control system to the
remote-control system based on the one or more of the location, the
condition of the vehicle system, or the one or more of the request
or condition of the operator.
[0347] Optionally, the one or more processors are configured to
transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system from the
remote-control system to the onboard vehicle control system or to
transfer control of the movement of the vehicle system to the
remote-control system from the onboard vehicle control system
responsive to the vehicle system entering the location being a
designated geographic area or a designated segment of a route.
Optionally, the location is a designated practice area for manual
control of the vehicle system by the operator. Optionally, the
condition is a fault state of the vehicle system. Optionally, the
condition is a communication loss between the vehicle system and
the remote-control system. Optionally, the condition is a decreased
alertness of the operator.
[0348] It is to be understood that the above description is
intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. For example, the
above-described embodiments (and/or aspects thereof) may be used in
combination with each other. In addition, many modifications may be
made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings
of the inventive subject matter without departing from its scope.
While the dimensions and types of materials described herein are
intended to define the parameters of the inventive subject matter,
they are by no means limiting and are exemplary embodiments. Many
other embodiments will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the
art upon reviewing the above description. The scope of the
inventive subject matter should, therefore, be determined with
reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of
equivalents to which such claims are entitled. In the appended
claims, the terms "including" and "in which" are used as the
plain-English equivalents of the respective terms "comprising" and
"wherein." Moreover, in the following claims, the terms "first,"
"second," and "third," etc. are used merely as labels, and are not
intended to impose numerical requirements on their objects.
Further, the limitations of the following claims are not written in
means-plus-function format and are not intended to be interpreted
based on 35 U.S.C. .sctn. 112(f), unless and until such claim
limitations expressly use the phrase "means for" followed by a
statement of function void of further structure.
[0349] This written description uses examples to disclose several
embodiments of the inventive subject matter, including the best
mode, and also to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to
practice the embodiments of inventive subject matter, including
making and using any devices or systems and performing any
incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the inventive subject
matter is defined by the claims, and may include other examples
that occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. Such other examples
are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have
structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of
the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with
insubstantial differences from the literal languages of the
claims.
[0350] The foregoing description of certain embodiments of the
present inventive subject matter will be better understood when
read in conjunction with the appended drawings. The various
embodiments are not limited to the arrangements and instrumentality
shown in the drawings.
[0351] As used herein, an element or step recited in the singular
and proceeded with the word "a" or "an" should be understood as not
excluding plural of said elements or steps, unless such exclusion
is explicitly stated. Furthermore, references to "one embodiment"
of the present invention are not intended to be interpreted as
excluding the existence of additional embodiments that also
incorporate the recited features. Moreover, unless explicitly
stated to the contrary, embodiments "comprising," "comprises,"
"including," "includes," "having," or "has" an element or a
plurality of elements having a particular property may include
additional such elements not having that property.
* * * * *